In Brief
This case involves a dispute over partition of ancestral and self-acquired properties belonging to descendants of Pillappa. The Supreme Court upheld two registered release deeds that validly severed two members from the coparcenary, allowing the releases to stand despite lower courts' rejection on procedural grounds. The Court also accepted an unregistered partition deed (palupatti) as admissible collateral evidence of family severance and separate possession, when supported by consistent subsequent conduct. The partitionable estate was computed using notional partition under the Hindu Succession Act, excluding released members and separately held properties. The Court clarified that registered releases operate immediately to divest coparcenary rights, and unregistered family settlements may prove severance through corroborating conduct.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.