# SADA KAUR v. BAKHTAW AR SINGH AND ORS - **Citation:** [1981] 1 S.C.R. 85 - **Court:** Supreme Court of India - **Decided:** 1980-07-24 - **Bench:** A. C. Gupta, N. L. Untwalia Jj - **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/sada-kaur-v-bakhtaw-ar-singh-and-ors-8181 - **Pages:** 7 ## Headnote Hindu Law:__Dhaliwal lat Sikhs of Muktsar-Widow marrying her late /msband's brothe1~If forfeits life interest in the estate of her deceased husbandRiwaj-i-am and Rattigan's Digest of customary law in Punjab-In case of co!!flict which should prevail. The first three respondents and the deceased husband of the appellant who were Dhaliwal jats of Muktsar Tehsil in Ferozepur District of Punjab were brothers. After the death of her husband the appellant married the your:ger bwther of her late husband in Karewa form. The first two respondents filed a suit for a declaration that having married for the second time, .the appellant had forfeited her interest in her deceased husband's estate and· that they were entitled to two-third share of the land in her possession. The appellant on the other hand claimed that they were governed by customary law and according to their custom a widow marrying her deceased husband's brother did not forfeit her interest in the estate of her deceased husband. In replication the respondents stated that according to the custom governing Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar a widow remarrying even her deceased .husband's brother forfeited her right in the estate. The trial Court declined to grant the declaration; but the District Judge allowed the plaintiffs' appeal. The High Court did not accept the appellant's claim that there was a special custom. Dismissing the appeal . HELD: The High Court was right in holding that there was no special custom among Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar which. permitted a widow, on remarriage with her deceased husband's brother. to retain her interest in theestate of her deceased husband. . It is well-known that custom in the Punjab changes from district to district, A. c F tehsil to tehsil and pargana to pargana. [88A] · G· -1 It has been held by this Court that entries in the riwaj+am compiled in 1915 by Currie, Settlement Officer, are relevant evidence und'er section 35 of the Evidence Act. [88F-G] Mahant Salig Ram v. Mst. Maya Devi, [1955] I SCR 1191' and· lai Kaur and others v. Sher Singh and others, [1960] 3 SCR 975 referred to. Entry 47 of the riwaj-i-am states that whenever a widow re-marries, even if she marries the brother of her deceased husband, she loses her right to her deceased husband's estate and that the estak reverts at once to his agnate~. 86 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1981] I S.C.R. ..A As regards the effect of re-marriage, all tribes that admit widow re-marriage agree that no matter whom the widow marries she forfeits all rights to her deceased husband's .estate. [89D] ·C D F Another authoritative compilation is Rattigan's Digest of Customary Law in the Punjab. But when custom as recorded in the riwaj-him is in conflict with the general custom as recorded in Rattigan's Digest or ascertained otherwise, the entries in the riwaj-i-am ·would ,ordinarily prevail. On this aspect of the custom there is no conflict between the two because Rattigan's Digest also states that in the absence of custom, the re-marriage of a widow causes a forfeiture of her life interest in her first husband's estate which then reverts to the nearest heir of the husband. (90E-F] One of the exceptions recorded to this general custom, however, is that among certain tribes re-marriage in the Karewa form with the brother of the deceased husband does not cause a forfeiture of the widow's life estate in the property of her first husband. But among the cases· cited. in support of the special custom relating to Sikh jats of certain districts of Punjab there is no mention of Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar. It was for the first time that in the 12th edition of Rattigan's Digest published long after his death that an exception was added that by custom among the Sikh jats of the Punjab a 'widow does not forfeit her life estate in her deceased husband's property by reason of. her remarriage in Kare.wa form with her husband's brother, whether h:! be the sole surviving brother or there are other brothers as ## Text 85 SADA KAUR v. BAKHTAW AR SINGH AND ORS. July 24, 1980 [A. C. GUPTA AND N. L. UNTWALIA JJ.J Hindu Law:__Dhaliwal lat Sikhs of Muktsar-Widow marrying her late /msband's brothe1~If forfeits life interest in the estate of her deceased husbandRiwaj-i-am and Rattigan's Digest of customary law in Punjab-In case of co!!flict which should prevail. The first three respondents and the deceased husband of the appellant who were Dhaliwal jats of Muktsar Tehsil in Ferozepur District of Punjab were brothers. After the death of her husband the appellant married the your:ger bwther of her late husband in Karewa form. The first two respondents filed a suit for a declaration that having married for the second time, .the appellant had forfeited her interest in her deceased husband's estate and· that they were entitled to two-third share of the land in her possession. The appellant on the other hand claimed that they were governed by customary law and according to their custom a widow marrying her deceased husband's brother did not forfeit her interest in the estate of her deceased husband. In replication the respondents stated that according to the custom governing Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar a widow remarrying even her deceased .husband's brother forfeited her right in the estate. The trial Court declined to grant the declaration; but the District Judge allowed the plaintiffs' appeal. The High Court did not accept the appellant's claim that there was a special custom. Dismissing the appeal . HELD: The High Court was right in holding that there was no special custom among Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar which. permitted a widow, on remarriage with her deceased husband's brother. to retain her interest in theestate of her deceased husband. . It is well-known that custom in the Punjab changes from district to district, A. c F tehsil to tehsil and pargana to pargana. [88A] · G· -1 It has been held by this Court that entries in the riwaj+am compiled in 1915 by Currie, Settlement Officer, are relevant evidence und'er section 35 of the Evidence Act. [88F-G] Mahant Salig Ram v. Mst. Maya Devi, [1955] I SCR 1191' and· lai Kaur and others v. Sher Singh and others, [1960] 3 SCR 975 referred to. Entry 47 of the riwaj-i-am states that whenever a widow re-marries, even if she marries the brother of her deceased husband, she loses her right to her deceased husband's estate and that the estak reverts at once to his agnate~. 86 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1981] I S.C.R. ..A As regards the effect of re-marriage, all tribes that admit widow re-marriage agree that no matter whom the widow marries she forfeits all rights to her deceased husband's .estate. [89D] ·C D F Another authoritative compilation is Rattigan's Digest of Customary Law in the Punjab. But when custom as recorded in the riwaj-him is in conflict with the general custom as recorded in Rattigan's Digest or ascertained otherwise, the entries in the riwaj-i-am ·would ,ordinarily prevail. On this aspect of the custom there is no conflict between the two because Rattigan's Digest also states that in the absence of custom, the re-marriage of a widow causes a forfeiture of her life interest in her first husband's estate which then reverts to the nearest heir of the husband. (90E-F] One of the exceptions recorded to this general custom, however, is that among certain tribes re-marriage in the Karewa form with the brother of the deceased husband does not cause a forfeiture of the widow's life estate in the property of her first husband. But among the cases· cited. in support of the special custom relating to Sikh jats of certain districts of Punjab there is no mention of Dhaliwal jats of Tehsil Muktsar. It was for the first time that in the 12th edition of Rattigan's Digest published long after his death that an exception was added that by custom among the Sikh jats of the Punjab a 'widow does not forfeit her life estate in her deceased husband's property by reason of. her remarriage in Kare.wa form with her husband's brother, whether h:! be the sole surviving brother or there are other brothers as well of the deceased. Sant Singh• v. Rari Bai (AIR 1924 Sindh 17=76 Indian Cases 408) on which this exception is purported to be based does not Jay down any such broad proposition to justify the statement aaded in the 12th edition of Rattigan's book. In Sant Singh's case the parties were Sikh jats from Jullundur District and Basant v. Pratap (51 Punjab Record 1911) on which the Sant Singh's case relied the parties were Sikh jats from Ludhiana District. But the headnotes in both cases stated it as the custom "among Sikh jats in the Punjab" which clearly is .wr<'ng. Therefore, it cannot be said that there is any real conflict between riwaj-i-am and Rattigan's Digest on this point. The statement in Charan Singh v. Gurdial Singh, AIR 1961 Punjab 301 that among jats governed by cus1:0m in matters of succession a widow marrying her deceased husband's brother remains entitled to collateral succession in the family is too wide having regard' to the facts of the case. [90H & 9.lA £] CIVIL APPELLATE J UR!SDICTION: 1970. Civil Appeal No. 1057 of From the Judgment and Order dated 3-11-1969 of the Punjab 'G and Haryana High _Court in R.S.A. No. 1456/64. S. K. Si1iha for the Appellant~ Hardev Singh, S. K. Bagga and Mrs. S. Bagga for the Respondent. The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 'H GUPTA, J. This appeal by certificate granted by the Punjab and Haryana Higb Coutt 1 'is from the judgment of a Full Bench of that Court ,answering the following question referred to it: _J ) ~ .. SADA KAUR v. BAKHTAWAR SINGH (Gupta, J() 87 "Whether by universal custom among the Sikh Jats of the Punjab, a widow does not forfeit her life estate· in her husband's property by reason of her remarriage in Karewa form with her husband's brother, and if so, whether the custom admits of exceptions among different tribes of Sikh Jats and in .particular among Dhaliwal Jats of Muktsar Tehsil of Ferozepur District." The relevant facts are these. The first three respondents, Bakhtawar Singh. Jit Singh and Chand Singh, and the deceased husband of the appellant Sada Kaur were brothers. The appellant's husband died sometime in the year 1937 and a few months later she married the ·third respondent Chand Singh who was a younger brother of her husband in Karewa form. The suit out of which this appeal arises was brought by the first two respondents, Bakhtawar Singh and Jit Singh, as plaintiffs for a declaration that they were entitled· to two-third share of the land in possession of the present appellant Sada Kaur which belonged to the appellant's deceased husband. Appellant Sada Kaur and her second husband Chand Singh were impleaded as defendant Nos. 1 and 2 respectively. The plaiintiffs' case was that Sada Kaur having married for the second time had forfeited her interest in her deceased husband's estate. The parties are Dhaliwal Jats of Muktrnr TehsiJ in the Ferozepur District of Punjab. In her written statement Sada Kaur pleaded that the parties were governed by customary law and according to their custom a widow marryfug her deceased husband's brother did not forfeit her interest in the estate of her deceased husband. The plaintiffs filed a, replication stating that according to the custom governing Dhaliwal Jats of Tehsil Muktsar, a widow . on remarrying even her deceased husband's ]Jrotlier forfeited her right in the . estate. The only question that arises for consideration in the present appeal is whether there is a custom governing the parties to the suit according to which on remarriage the widow forfeits her interest fu th~ estate of her deceased husband as claimed by the plaintiffs. The trial court declined to grant a declaration as asked for by the plaintiffs who preferred an appeal to the District Judge which' was allowed. Sada Kaur took a second appeal to the High Court challenging the decision of the lower appellate court. The learned single Judge before whom the second appeal came up for hearing was fuclined· to accept the plaintiffs' case and dismiss the appeal but felt that a Full Bench 0f three learned Judge~ of th~. Punjab High Court in an earlier case. Charan Singh v. Gurdial Singh(1) appeared to have taken a contrary view on the question and referred the appeal to a larger bench. A Division Bench of the High Court thereafter referred the case to a Full Bench of five Judges and it is the Judgment of this Full Bench that is under appeal before us. (1) AIR 1961 Punjab 301. B. c· ·C D H 88 'SUP:R.EME COURT REPORTS [1981) l S.C.R. In Mara and others v. Nikko and others(1) this Court observed that it is "well known" that "custom in the Punjab changes from District to District, Tehsil to Tehsil and Pargana to Pargana". The judgment under appeal relies mainly ori the riwaj-i-am of Ferozepur District compiled in 1915 by M. M. L. Currie, Settlement Officer. The evidentiary value of the entries in the riwaj-i-am has been discussed in more than one decision of this OourtJ. In Mohant &dig Ram v. Mst. Maya Devi(2) it wa,s held: · "There is no doubt or dispute as to the value of the entries in the riwaj-i-am. It is well settled that though they are entitled to an initial presumption in favour of their ·~orrectness irrespective of the question whether or not the custom, a!; recorded, is in accord with the general custom, the quantum of evidence necessary to rebut. that presumption will, however, vary with the facts and circumstances of each case. Whether,. for instance, the riwaj-i-am lays down a custom in consonance with the general agriculturai custom of the province, very strong proof would be required to displace that presumption ; but whether, on the other hand, the custom as recorded in the riwaj-i-am is opposed to the custom generally prevalent, the presumption will be considerably weakened, likewise, Whether the riwaj-i-am affects adversely the rights of the families who had no opportunity whatever of appearing before the revenue authorities, the presumption will be weaker still and only a few instances would be suffident to rebut it." . There is however no material to suggest that the riwaj-i-am in this case suffers from any such infirmity. In Jai Kaur and others v. Sher Singh and· others(3) this Court has said: "The value of entries in the riwaj-i-am has ......... been repeatedly stressed. That they are relevant evidence under section 35 of the Evidence Act is clear and the fact that the entries therein are the result of careful research of persons who might also be considered to have become experts in these matters, after an open and public inquiry has given them a value w~ic·h· should not. be lightly under-estimated. There is therefore an m1tial presumption of correctness as regards the entries in the riwaj-i-am ...... " Question No. 47 of Currie's compilation reads: (I) [19641 7 ~.C.R. 430. (2) [1955] 1 S.C.R. 11'91. '(3) [1960] 3 S.C.R. 975. l - SADA KAUR v. BAKHTAWAR SINGH (Gupta, J.) 89 "What is the. effect of unchastity upon the right of a widow A to the estate of her deceased husband ? What is the effect of her remarriage ? " The answer to the question in so far as it deals with remarriage is as follows: "At last settlement Mr. Francis wrote: 'unchastity or remarriage deprives a widow of her right to the property'. The Muktsar •Code· gives a similar answer ....... Further (on page 124) it says: Whenever a widow remarries, even if she marry the brother of her