Court shall sit in the “armchair” of the Testator and decide

Court shall sit in the “armchair” of the Testator and decide:

The Supreme Court in ARUNKUMAR & ANR. v. SHRINIWAS & ORS (2003(3 ) Supreme 422), after referring to the decision in Navneet Lal @ Rangi v. Gokul and Ors (1976(1) SCC 630), laid down the following principles in the interpretation of Wills:-

"(i) The fundamental rule is to ascertain the intention of the testator from the words used, the surrounding circumstances for the purpose of finding out the intended meaning of the words which have been employed;

(ii) The Court, in doing so is entitled to put itself into the armchair of the testator and is bound to bear in mind also other matters than merely the words used and the probability that the testator had/ would have used the words in a particular sense, in order to arrive at a right construction of the Will and ascertain the meaning of the language used;

(iii) The true intention of the testator has to be gathered not by attaching importance to isolated expressions but by reading the Will as a whole, with all its provisions and ignoring none of them, as redundant or contradictory, giving such construction as would give to every expression some effect rather than that which would render any of the expressions inoperative.

(iv) Where apparently conflicting dispositions can be reconciled by giving full effect to every word used in a document, such a construction should be accepted instead of a construction which would have the effect of cutting down the clear meaning of the words used by the testator;

(v) It is one of the cardinal principles of construction of Wills that to the extent that it is legally possible effect should be given to every disposition contained in the Will, unless the law prevents effect being given to it. If even there appear to be two repugnant provisions conferring successive interests and the first interest created is valid the subsequent interest cannot take effect, the court will proceed to the farthest extent to avoid repugnancy, so that effect could be given as far as possible, to every testamentary intention contained in the Will".

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