Evidentiary Standards for Proving Wills, Pleading Constraints, and the Evaluation of Handwriting Expert Evidence

sketch of the Bombay High Court
Case
Rajkumar Assudomal Gurbani. v. Vijay Gulab Gurbani. (Bombay High Court, 17-09-2026)
Law
Indian Succession Act, Indian Evidence Act.

Highlights of the Judgment:

  • Detailed analysis of the statutory requirements for the due execution and attestation of a Will under Section 63(c) of the Indian Succession Act, 1925.
  • Examination of the principle that evidence cannot travel beyond pleadings, specifically regarding challenges raised outside the Affidavit in Support of a Caveat.
  • Evaluation of the evidentiary value of expert handwriting testimony under Section 45 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, when based on secondary or unproved materials.
  • Differentiation between physical infirmity and testamentary capacity in assessing a testator's sound disposing mind.
  • Legal interpretation on whether the exclusion of natural heirs constitutes an unexplained suspicious circumstance when reasons are explicitly articulated.