Summarize the following court judgment. Appeal No. 12 of 1953. Appeal from the Judgment and Decree dated the 31st March	 1949	 of the High Court of Judicature at Bombay (Chagla C.J.	 Weston and Dixit JJ.) in First Appeal No. 175 of 1946	 arising out of the Judgment and Decree dated the 28th February	 1946	 of the Court of the Civil Judge	 Senior Division at Broach in Special Suit No. 9 of 1941. K. section Krishnaswamy Aiyangar (H. J. Umrigar	 with him) for the appellants. C. K. Daphtary	 Solicitor General for India (J. B. Dadachanii	 with him) for respondents Nos. I and 2. 1953. November 18. The Judgment of the Court was delivered by MUKHERJEA J. This appeal is directed against a judgment and decree of the Bombay High Court	 dated the 31st March	 1949	 confirming	 on appeal	 the decision of the Civil Judge	 Senior Division	 at Broach	 in Special Suit No. 9 of 1941. The facts of the case	 though a bit long	 are not in controversy at the present stage and the entire dispute bet ween the parties centres round certain points of law relating to the rights of the reversioners	 in whose favour a deed of surrender was executed by a Hindu widow	 to recover 341 possession of the properties	 belonging to the last male owner	 during the lifetime of the widow from persons who acquired title to the same by adverse possession against the widow. To appreciate the contentions that have been raised by the parties before us	 it will be convenient to give a brief narrative of the material facts in their chronological order. A reference to the short genealogical table given below will show at once the relationship between the parties to the present litigation. Jijibhai | | | | | | Tribhovan Kashibhai | (died in 1914) | | Mathurbhai | | (diedin 1924) Shankarabhai Rukmini== ==Hirabai (died in 1922) Manubhai | ==Bai Kashi (husband) | (widow) | unjabhai (Deft. No. 3) | (died in 1931) | | | | | | | | | Natvarlal Ravajibhai Dadubhai RajiniKant (Deft. No. 1) (Deft. No. 2) (Piff.1) (Plff. 2) One Jijibhai	 whose name appears at the head of the table	 had two sons	 Tribhovan and Kashibhai. Tribhovan had a son named Mathurbhai who died in 1924 leaving	 behind him	 his widow Hirabai and a son Punjabhai. Kashibhai died in 1914 leaving a son Shankarbhai and a daughter Rukmini. Shankarbhai	 whose property is the subject matter of dispute in the present case	 died without any issue in 1922	 leaving his widow Bai Kashi who is defendant No. 3 in the suit. It is said	 that there was a notional partition between Kashibhai and Mathurbhai in 1913 which effected a severance of their joint status without any actual division of properties by metes and bounds. Mathurbhai died on 26th January	 1924	 and on the 2nd of June following Hirabai	 his widow	 made an application to the District Judge for appointment of a guardian of the person and property of her minor son Punjabhai	 alleging	 inter alia	 that the minor was the sole owner of the entire joint estate by right 342 of survivorship. On the 1st of July	 1924	 Bai Kashi	 the widow of Shankarbhai	 was served with a notice of this application. On the 17th of July following	 she purported to adopt a son named Sivabhai and in answer to the notice in the guardianship proceeding served upon her	 put forward the claim of her adopted son. The District Judge regarded the adoption to be invalid and by his order dated November 29	 1924	 appointed the Deputy Nazir of his court as guardian of the properties of the minor Punjabhai	 the properties including the share of Shankarbhai in the joint estate. The Deputy Nazir took possession of all the properties on behalf of the minor and it is not disputed that Bai Kashi never got possession of any portion of these properties since then. In 1926 Bai Kashi as the guardian of her infant adopted son Sivabhai brought a Title Suit	 being Suit No. 180 of 1926	 claiming partition of the joint family properties on the allegation that	 by adoption	 Sivabhai became a co owner to the extent of a half share in them. The suit was resisted by Punjabhai represented by his court guardian and the main contention put forward on his behalf was that the adoption	 by the widow	 of Sivabhai was invalid in law. This contention was given effect to by the trial judge and by his judgment dated the 4th July	 1927	 the suit was dismissed. An appeal was taken against this decision	 on behalf of Sivabhai	 to the High Court of Bombay	 but the appeal was withdrawn on the 25th July	 1927. Thereafter in 1930	 Rukmini	 the sister of Shankarbhai and the mother of the present plaintiffs	 instituted a suit	 being Suit No. 350 of 1930	 for a declaration that the joint status of the family was disrupted by the notional partition effected between Mathurbhai and Kashibhai in 1913 and she	 as the next heir of Shankarbhai	 was entitled to succeed to Shankarbhai 's share of the properties on the death of Bai Kashi. The trial judge was of opinion that there was	 in fact	 a severance of joint status by an informal partition between Mathurbhai and Kashibhai	 but he dismissed the suit on the ground that a suit of this character was not maintainable in law. 343 Rukmini died soon after that and her two sons	 who were then minors	 represented by their father as next friend	 pre ferred an appeal to the High Court against this order of dismissal. The High Court allowed the appeal and gave a declaration in favour of the appellants to the effect that there was disruption of the joint family in the year	 1913. This judgment is dated the 8th of February	 1939	 and there after on the 30th of January	 1941	 Bai Kashi executed a deed of surrender in favour of the plaintiffs relinquishing her widow 's estate in favour of the husband 's nearest rever sioners. On the basis of this deed of surrender the plaintiffs brought the suit	 out of which this appeal arises	 in the Court of the Civil Judge	 Broach	 claiming possession of the disputed properties as the next heirs of Shankarbhai against the defendants who are the sons and heirs of Punjabhai. Bai Kashi was impleaded as defendant No. 3 in the suit. The suit was resisted by defendants I and 2 who raised a number of pleas in answer to the plaintiffs ' claim. The material defence was of a	 three fold character. It was contended in the first place that there was no partition between Mathurbhai and Kashibhai as alleged by the plaintiffs and the family being still joint when Shankarbhai died	 the entire joint estate vested in Mathurbhai by right of survivorship. It was alleged in the second place	 that even if the family had separated	 the adopted son of Bai Kashi being a nearer heir the plaintiffs had no title to the property. The last and the main defence was that the defendants having acquired a title by adverse possession against the widow	 and the widow having lost whatever interest she had in her husband 's property	 the deed of surrender was invalid	 and even if it was valid	 the surrenderees could not claim possession so long as the widow was alive. The trial court overruled all these contentions and decreed the plaintiff 's suit. The defendants I and 2 preferred an appeal against this decision to the High Court of Bombay and the appeal first came up for hearing before a Division Bench consisting of Chagla C.J.	 and Dixit J. The learned Judges	 by their judgment 344 dated the 23rd January	 1948	 which has been described as an interlocutory judgment	 disposed of the first two points mentioned above and affirmed the decision of the trial court thereon. It was held that the decision in Rukmini 's Title Suit No. 350 of 1930	 to which the defendants were made parties	 precluded them from challenging the fact of there being a partition between Mathurbhai and Kashibhai in 1913 and also from contending that Sivabhai was a validly adopted son. There remained the only other question	 namely	 as to whether the plaintiffs could	 on the basis of the deed of surrender	 lay a claim for possession of the properties during the lifetime of the widow	 as against persons	 who had acquired title by adverse possession against her. In regard to this point	 a contention was raised on behalf of the appellants that the deed of surrender was not duly proved and as there was no definite finding on this point	 the learned Judges sent the case back for findings on the two following issues which they themselves framed: (i)Whether the plaintiffs proved the deed of surrender dated 30th January	 1941 ? and (ii)Whether Bai Kashi surrendered the whole of her husband 's interest in the whole property of her husband? The trial court recorded its findings on both these issues after taking additional evidence and its findings were in favour of the plaintiffs. After the findings were returned to the High Court	 the appeal was heard by a Full Bench con sisting of Chagla C.J. and Weston and Dixit JJ. The Full Bench confirmed the decree of the trial court and dismissed the appeal. It was held by the learned Judges that even though the defendants acquired by adverse possession a title against the Hindu widow	 the deed of surrender executed by her did not become infructuous or inoperative thereby; and as there was acceleration of inheritance in favour of the plaintiffs who were the next heirs of Shankarbhai	 they were competent to recover possession of the properties at once by 34 5 evicting the defendants and were not bound to wait till the widow actually died. It is the propriety of this decision that has been challenged bedore us by the defendants 1 and 2 in this appeal. The arguments advanced by Mr. Krishnaswami Ayyangar	 who appeared in support of the appealcan be conveniently considered under two heads. The first branch of his contention is	 that as the widow 's estate was in this case completely extinguished by adverse possession exercised by the defendants	 she had	 in fact	 no interest left in her	 which she could make a surrender of in favour of the reversions. What is said is	 that the widow	 by suffering the trespassers to remain in possession of her husband 's estate for more than the statutory period	 had placed it ab solutely beyond her power to deal with it any further; and her title being already extinguished by adverse possession	 no further extinction by any act of surrender on her part was possible. The other branch of the learned counsel 's contention is	 that assuming	 that the widow could make a surrender	 such surrender could not prejudice the rights of persons	 acquired by grant from the widow or by prescription against her prior to the date of surrender and these rights would	 in law	 endure during the entire period of the widow 's natural life. Whatever rights the reversions could assert	 they could assert only after the widow 's death and not during her lifetime. A number of decided authorities have been canvassed before us in this connection by the learned counsel and it cannot be disputed that judicial opinion on these points is not at all uniform. It seems to us that for a proper determination of the questions	 it is necessary first of all to formulate as clearly as possible the precise nature and effect of what is known as "surrender" by a Hindu widow. The word "surrender" cannot be said to be free from ambiguity. It connotes nothing more than the English doctrine of merger and a Hindu widow	 whose interest is usually	 though incorrectly	 likened to that of a life tenant under the English law	 merely accele 346 rates the reversion by surrendering her limited interest in favour of the reversioner	 undoubtedly no surrender can be effective if the widow has already parted with her interest in the property by a voluntary act of her own or her rights therein have been extinguished by adverse possession of a stranger. The English doctrine of merger	 though it may have influenced some of the judicial pronouncements in our country has really speaking no application to a Hindu widow 's estate. The law of surrender by a Hindu widow as it stands at present	 is for the most part	 judge made law	 though it may not be quite correct to say that there is absolutely no textual authority upon which the doctrine could be founded	 at least	 impliedly. So far as the Dayabhag law is concerned	 its origin is attributed to Jimutabahan 's commentary on the well known text of Katyayana which describes the interest of a childless widow in the estate left by her husband and the rights of the reversioners after her death(1). While commenting on Katyayana 's text	 Jimutabahan lays down that the persons who should be the next heirs on failure of prior claimants would get the residue of the estate after her use on the demise of the widow in whom the succession had vested	 as they would have succeeded if the widow 's rights were non existent or destroyed (in otherways) [jatadhikaraya ; patnya: adhikikara pradlvamsspi bhogavasishtam dhanam grrhiyu : ] (2). It was observed by Ashutosh Mookerjee J. in Debi Prosad vs Golap Bhagat(3) that the theory of relinquishment or surrender was foreshadowed in these remarks of Jimutabahan. This much is clear from the passage referred to above that the commenta tor had in mind other modes of extinction of the widow 's interest in her husband 's properties besides the natural death of the widow	 which would have the effect of letting in her husband 's heirs. There is indeed no mention of surrender or renunciation in the text and it was not on the basis of any textual authority that the law of surrender developed in (1) Vide Dayabhag Chap. II	 section 1	 paragraph 56. (2) Dayabhag Chap. II	 section I	 paragraph 59. (3) at 771. 347 India. But it Must be noticed that though certain terms and expressions of English law have been made use of in a some what loose sense	 yet the radical idea involved in the doctrine of surrender by a Hindu widow is totally different from what is implied in the merger of a life interest in the reversionary estate under the English law. In English law the reversioner or remainderman has a vested interest in the property and his rights are simply augmented by the surrender of the life estate. In the Hindu law	 on the other hand	 the widow	 so long as she is alive	 fully represents her husband 's estate	. though her powers of alienation are curtailed and the property after her death goes not to her but to her husband 's heirs. The presumptive reversioner has got no interest in the property during the lifetime of the widow. He has a mere chance of succession which may not materialise at all. He can succeed to the property at any particular time only if the widow dies at that very moment. The whole doctrine of surrender is based upon this analogy or legal fiction of the widow 's death. The widow 's estate is an interposed limitation or obstruction which prevents or impedes the course of suc cession in favour of the heirs of her husband. It is open to the widow by a voluntary act of her own to remove this obstruction and efface herself from the husband 's estate al together. If she does that	 the consequence is the same as she died a natural death and the next heirs of her husband then living step in at once under the ordinary law of inheritance. In spite of some amount of complexity which is unavoidable in a law evolved by judicial decisions	 this fund. mental basis of the doctrine of surrender can be said to be established beyond doubt. Thus Lord Dunedin in Gounder	 v Gounden(1) enunciated the law in clear terms as follows: "It is settled by long practice and confirmed by decision that a Hindu widow can renounce in favour of the neares	 reversioner if there be only one or of all the reversioners (1) 46 I.A. 72 at 79. 348 nearest in degree if more than one at the moment. That is to say	 she can	 so to speak	 by voluntary act operate her own death. " Again in repudiating the suggestion that there could be any such thing as a partial surrender	 His Lordship observed: "As already pointed out	 it is the effacement of the widow an effacement which in other circumstances is effected by actual death or by civil death which opens the estate of the deceased husband to his next heirs at that date. Now	 there cannot be a widow who is partly effaced and partly not so. " Thus surrender is not really an act of alienation of the widow of her rights in favour of the reversioner. The rever sioner does not occupy the position of a grantee or transferee	 and does not derive his title from her. He derives his title from the last male holder as his successor in law and the rights of succession are opened out by the act of self effacement on the part of the widow which operates in the same manner as her physical death. It is true that a surrender may and in the majority of cases does take the form of transfer	 e.g.	 when the widow conveys the entire estate of her husband. without consideration and not as a mere device to share the estate with the reversioner	 in favour of the latter. But "it is the self effacement by the widow that forms the basis of surrender and not the ex facie transfer by which such effacement is brought about"(2). The true nature and effect of a surrender by a Hindu widow of her husband 's estate have been thus summoned up	 and in our opinion quite correctly	 by a Division Bench of the Madras High Court(3): "It is settled that the true view of surrender under the Hindu law is that it is a voluntary act of self effacement by the widow having the same consequences as her death	 in opening up the succession to the next heirs of the last male owner. The intermediate stage is merely extingushed and (1) I.L.R. 39 Mad. 1035. (2) See Vytla Sitanna vs Mariwada 61 I.A. 200	 207 ; Mumareddi vs Pitti Darairaja 	 661. (3) Vide Damaraju vs T.Narayana I.L.R.1941 Mad.551	557. 349 not transferred and the law then steps in to accelerate succession so as to let in the next reversioner. The surrender conveys nothing in law; it is purely a self effacement which must of necessity be complete; for	 as the Privy Council has said	 there cannot be a widow partly effaced and partly not just as there cannot be a widow partly dead and partly alive. The fiction of a civil death is thus assumed when a surrender takes place; and when the reversioners come in they come in their own right as heirs of the last owner and not as transferees from the widow. " As surrender conveys nothing in law and merely causes extinction of the widow 's rights in her husband 's estate	 there is no reason why it should be necessary that the estate must remain with the widow before she could exercise her power of surrender. The widow might have alienated the property to a stranger or some one might have been in adverse possession of the same for more than the statutory period. If the alienation is for legal necessity	 it would certainly be binding upon the estate and it could not be impeached by any person under any circumstance. But if the alienation is not for legal necessity	 or if a squatter has acquired title by adverse possession against the widow	 neither the alienation nor the rights of the adverse possessor could affect the reversioners ' estate at all. These rights have their origin in acts or omissions of the widow which are not binding on the husband 's estate They are in reality dependent upon the widow 's estate and if the widow 's estate is extinguished by any means known to law	 e.g.	 by her adopting a son or marrying again	 these rights must also cease to exist. The same consequences should follow when the widow withdraws herself from her husband 's estate by an act of renunciation on her part. Whether any equitable principle can be invoked in favour of a third party who has acquired rights over the property by any act or omission of the widow may be a matter for consideration. But the learned counsel for the appellants is not right when he says that as adverse possession extinguished the rights of the widow	 no fresh extinction by an act of surrender was possible. As the rights acquired by adverse possession are 350 available only against the widow and not against the hus band 's heirs	 the husband 's estate still remains undestroyed and the widow may withdraw herself from that estate leaving it open to the reversioners to take possession of it at once as heirs of the last male holder unless there is any other rule of law or equity which prevent them from doing so. The first branch of the appellants ' contention cannot	 therefore	 succeed. This leads us to the other branch of the appellants ' contention and the question arises whether in case of sur render by a Hindu widow	 a person	 who has	 prior to the date of surrender	 acquired	 by adverse possession	 an inte rest in the widow 's estate	 can be ousted from possession of the property so long as the widow remains alive? This question	 Mr. Ayyangar argues	 should be answered in the negative. His contention	 in substance	 is	 that by reason of adverse possession for more than 12 years the title of the limited owner became extinguished under article 28 of the Limitation Act and the possessor acquired good title against the widow. This title	 it is said	 cannot be displaced by the surrenderee who gets the property by reason of a	 subsequent voluntary act on the part of the widow. In support of this contention the learned counsel has placed reliance upon a number of cases	 principally of the Madras High Court	 where it has been held that a reversions in whose favour a surrender has been made by the widow cannot challenge the right of a prior alienee from the widow	 even though the alienation was not for legal necessity	 so long as the widow remains alive; and the same protection could be claimed by one who acquired the limited interest of a widow by adverse possession against her. It is undisputed that there is considerable divergence of judicial opinion on this point and in these circumstances it is necessary to examine briefly the different lines of reasoning adopted by the different High Courts in dealing with the subject. In Subbamma vs Subramanyam(4)	 which can be taken to be the leading pronouncement of the Madras High Court (1) I.L.R. 39 Mad. 351 on the point	 it was held that a surrender by a Hindu widow could not affect prior alienations made by her	 and even though such alienations might not be binding on the reversions as not being made for a proper or necessary purpose	 they are binding on the widow for her life time or at any rate during the period of her widowhood. In deciding this case the learned Judges relied mainly upon an earlier decision of the same court in Sreeramulu vs Kristamma(1)	 where the view taken was that an alienation	 not for legal necessity	 made by a Hindu widow	 prior to adopting a son	 could not be challenged by the adopted son so long as the widow remained alive. In other words	 the effect of a surrender by a Hindu widow was treated to be the same as that of an act of adoption by her. Two years later	 a Full Bench(2) of the Madras High Court overruled the decision in Sreeramulu vs Kristamma(1) and held that where a Hindu widow alienated property for a purpose not binding on the inheritance and thereafter adopt ed a son	 the right of the adopted son was not prejudiced by the unauthorised transfer and he could sue for possession at once. Although the Full Bench overruled the decision in Sreeramu vs Kristamma(1) which was relied on as an authority in Subbamnia 's case(3)	 yet the law enunciated in the latter case as regards the effect of surrender on previous alienations made by the widow was not dissented from	 and Kumaraswami Sastriyar J.	 who was one of the Judges com posing the Full Bench. in the course of his judgment	 expressed the view that the adoption of a son by a Hindu widow to her husband was quite different from surrender in favour of the reversions	 and to a relinquishment by the widow	 based on no consideration of duty to her husband or his spiritual benefit	 courts could very properly refuse to annex rights to defeat prior alienations made by her. (1) (2) Vide Vaidyanatha Sastri vs Savithri I.L.R. (3) I.L.R. 39 Mad. 352 This view was approved in Sundarasiva vs Viyyamma(1) and has been accepted since then as good law in all the subsequent cases(2) of the Madras High Court. The Madras High Court has also expressly held that the position of a person	 who has acquired by adverse possession the limited interest of a Hindu widow is exactly the same as that of an alienee from her and if the title of such person has been completed already	 it could not be defeated by a surrender made by the widow(1). These decisions undoubtedly support the appellants ' case. In the Calcutta High Court the question was raised in Prafulla Kamini vs Bhabani(4) as to whether a gift made by widow prior to surrendering her husband 's estate could be challenged by the reversioner during the period of the widow 's life. The two Judges	 constituting the Bench	 differed in their opinion; and whereas Walmsley J. held that the gift was valid for the period of the widow 's life	 Page J.	 on the other hand	 after an elaborate discussion of the law relating to the legal affect of a widow 's surrender	 came to the conclusion that the reversioner became immediately entitled to recover possession from the donee. In view of the difference of opinion between the two Judges	 there was an appeal filed under clause 15 of the Letters Patent	 but the point in controversy was not decided by the Letters Patent Bench. The matter again came up before another Bench of the Calcutta High Court consisting of D. N. Mitter and Rao JJ.(5). Both the Judges concurred in holding that the view expressed by Page J. in the earlier case was right and that on a surrender by the Hindu widow of her husband 's estate and the consequent extinguish (1) I.L.R. (2) Vide the oases collected in Arunachala vs Arumugha I.L.R. (3) Vide Kamiraju vs Singaraju A.I.R. 1935 Mad. 664; Korabala vs Ratala A.I.R. 1951 Mad. 753. (4) (5) Vide Ram Krishna vs Kausalya 353 ment of her interest therein all prior alienations in excess of her power were liable to be challenged by the reversioner immediately on the surrender taking effect just as they could be impeached if the widow died a natural death. In the judgment under appeal the Bombay High Court has substan tially accepted the view taken by the Calcutta Judges in the case referred to above. In the Allahabad High Court a Division Bench	 consisting of Boys and Sulaiman JJ. took a view similar to that of the Madras High Court	 in Lachmi vs Lachho(1). Boys J. in course of his judgment observed: "The doctrine of surrender having been imported into the Hindu law by judicial decision	 we are entitled to import the complementary rule essential to the prevention of fraud that the widow cannot by making a surrender defeat rights created by herself and creation of which was within her authority." Sulaiman J.	 on the other hand	 was very critical of this view and he expressed his own opinion(2) as follows: "I find great difficulty in discovering any true basis for holding that though the reversioner in whose favour the surrender has taken place has succeeded to the estate of the last male owner and derives title from him	 he is nevertheless 1stopped from challenging any alienations made by the Hindu widow during her lifetime as if he were a grantee from her." In spite of these observations	 however	 the learned Judge agreed with Boys J. in the conclusion arrived at by the latter	 principally on the ground that it would not work any hardship if the reversioner	 in whose favour the surrender is made	 were to take the property subject to the transfers made by the widow so as to allow the transfers to remain valid for her lifetime. There has however been a definite change in the (1) I.L.R. 49 All. 334. (2) I.L.R. 49 All 334 346. 354 view taken by the Allahabad High Court since then	 and in a very recent pronouncement(1) of that court the learned Judges have expressly approved of the decision of the Calcutta High Court which is in entire agreement with the opinion actually expressed by Sulaiman J. as stated above. So far as the Patna High Court is concerned	 the case of Basudeo vs Baidyanath(2) was decided sometime before the case of Ram Krishna vs Kausalya(3) was heard by the Calcutta High Court and the learned Judges	 without examining the principles of law independently	 followed the Madras autho rities which had at that time been accepted by the Allahabad High Court. An analysis of the Madras decisions	 referred to above	 upon which the learned counsel for the appellant places his reliance	 will show that the grounds upon which they purport to be based are of a threefold character. The first is that an alienation of property by a Hindu widow	 in excess of her powers	 though not binding on the inheritance	 creates in the alience an interest commensurate with the period of her natural life. A part of the interest	 it is said	 is severed from the husband 's estate when there is an alienation by the widow	 and the reversioner when he takes the estate on surrender	 takes it subject to the interest already created. A person	 who has acquired the widow 's interest by adverse possession against her	 occupies	 according to the Madras decisions	 as stated above	 the same position as an alienee from the widow. The second ground is	 that as the widow herself is in capable of disputing the title of the alienee or of the person who has acquired interest by adverse possession against her	 a like disability attaches to the reversioner also who could not have obtained the properties but for the surrender made by the widow. The third ground assigned is that the law of (1) Vide Raghuraj Singh vs Raba Singh A.I.R. 1952 All. 875. (2) A.I.R. 1935 Pat. (3) 355 surrender being a judge made law	 the courts in recognising the right of surrender by a Hindu widow can and ought to impose conditions on the exercise of her power based on considerations of justice	 equity and good conscience	 and surrender being a purely voluntary act on the part of the widow	 she could not be allowed by her own act to prejudice the interests which she had already created. The first line of reasoning mentioned above is based upon the dictum of Bhashyam Ayyangar J. in Sreeramulu vs Kristamma(1)	 which though accepted in ubbamma 's case(1)	 was expressly dissented from in the subsequent Full Bench decision in Vaidyanatha vs Savithri(3). This view	 in our opinion	 proceeds upon a misconception regarding the true nature of a	 Hindu widow 's estate and the rights and duties which vest in her under the Hindu law. Though loosely des cribed as a "life estate"	 the Hindu widow 's interest in her husband 's property bears no analogy to that of a "life tenant" under the English law. As was pointed out by the Judicial Committee(1) as early as 1861	 the estate which the Hindu widow takes is a qualified proprietorship with powers of alienation for purely worldly or secular purposes only when there is a justifying necessity and the restrictions on the powers of alienation are inseparable from her estate. The restrictions	 as the Judicial Committee pointed out	 which are imposed on the Hindu widow 's powers of alienation	 are not merely for the protection of the material interest of her husband 's relations	 but by reason of the opinion expressed by all the Smriti writers that the Hindu widow should live a life of moderation and cannot have any power of gift	 sale or mortgage except for religious or spiritual purposes. The Hindu law certainly does not countenance the idea of a widow alienating her property without any necessity	 merely as a (1) (2) I.L.R. 39 Mad. 1035. (3) I.L.R. 41 Mgad. (4) Vide Collector of Masulipatam vs Cavaly Venkata 8 M.I.A. 529. 356 mode of enjoyment	 as was suggested before us by Mr. Ayyangar. If such a transfer is made by a Hindu widow	 it is not correct to say that the transferee acquires necessarily and in law an interest commensurate with the period of the natural life of the widow or at any rate with the period of her widowhood. Such transfer is invalid in Hindu law	 but the widow	 being the grantor herself	 cannot derogate from the grant and the transfer cannot also be impeached so long as a person does not come into existence who can claim a present right to possession of the property. As in the majority of cases	 persons with such rights come into existence only when the widow dies it is generally said that the alienee gets the estate for the term of the widow 's life. We think that the legal position has been correctly indicated by Kumaraswami Shastriyar J. in the Full Bench case(1) referred to above. On the one hand	 a Hindu widow has larger rights than those of a life estate holder	 inasmuch as	 in case of justifying necessity she can convey to another an absolute title to the properties vested in her. On the other hand	 where there is no necessity for alienation	 the interest	 which she herself holds and which she can convey to others	 is not an indefeasible life estate	 but an estate liable to be defeated on the happening of certain events which in Hindu law cause extinction of the widow 's estate. Remarriage by the widow is one such event which completely divests her of any interest in her husband 's property. Adoption of a son to her husband is another circumstance which puts an end to her estate as heir to her husband	 the effect of adoption being to bring in a son who has prior claims to succession under the Hindu law. In both these sets of circumstances it is not disputed that prior rights derived from the widow	 if not supported by legal necessity	 could be defeated by the next heir of the husband or the adopted son as the case may be. If the effect of surrender	 as explained above	 is to destroy the widow 's estate in the same way as if she suffered physical or civil death	 there is no conceivable reason why the reversioner should not	 subject to any question of fraud or collusion that might arise	 be in a position to recover possession of the properties from (1) Vide	 Vaidyanatha vs Savithri	 I.L.R. 357 an alienee from the widow or from one who has obtained title by adverse possession against her	 as none of them could acquire rights except against the widow herself. Kumaraswami Shastriyar J. is of opinion(1) that a	 surrender stands on a different footing from adoption by a widow. According to the learned Judge	 the surrender by the widow and the acceptance of the estate by the reversioner are purely matters of contract. The widow is not bound to surrender the estate	 nor is the reversioner bound to accept it	 except on terms which would apply to any other transfer of immovable property so far as prior alienees are concerned. This	 in our opinion	 involves a total misapprehension of the nature and legal effect of surrender by a Hindu widow as we have already explained. Surrender is not alienation of an interest of the widow in favour of the reversioner	 and no acceptance by the reversioner is necessary as a condition precedent to the vesting of the estate in him. The estate vests in the reversioner under operation of law without any act on his part. It is also difficult to see why the learned Judge looked upon surrender as a matter of contract between the widow and the reversioner. It is true that the widow at the time of surrendering her husband 's estate can	 if she likes	 stipulate for a right to be maintained out of the properties for her lifetime; but reservation of such small benefit absolutely necessary for her maintenance does not invalidate a surrender as has been held by the Privy Council in more cases than one(1). Mr. Ayyangar argues that a widow	 who requires to be maintained out of her husband 's property	 cannot be said to have suffered death. But this argument is fallacious. Nobody says that the surrendering widow actually dies. It is a fiction of law pure and simple and it is for the law to determine under what circumstances this fiction of natural or civil death would arise. There is such a legal fiction involved in adoption also when a son is adopted by a widow subsequent to the death of her husband. Such adopted son is given the rights of a posthumous son and the fiction is that he was in existence from before (1) Vide Vaidyanatha vs Savithri	 I.L.R. at 99. (2) Vide Sureswar Misra vs Mahesarani	 47 T. A. 233. 358 the date of the proprietor 's death	 although the fact is otherwise. So far as the legal consequences are concerned	 there is no material difference between an adoption and an act of surrender by the widow. In our opinion	 there is no warrant in Hindu law for the proposition that in case of alienation by a Hindu widow of her husband 's property without any justifying necessity	 or in the case of a stranger acquiring title by adverse possession against her the interest created is to be deemed to be severed from the inheritance and if a surrender is made subsequently by the widow	 the surrenders must take it subject to such prior interest. Sulaiman J. in the Allahabad case(1) cited above enunciated the law with perfect precision when he said that the effect of an alienation by a widow is not to spilt up the husband 's estate into two parts or to give to the alienee an interest necessarily co extensive with her lifetime. The reversionary right to challenge it is no part of the widow 's estate at all and	 therefore	 could not be surrendered to the reversioner. The first line of reasoning	 therefore	 seems to us to be of no substance. The second ground upon which the Madras decisions purport to be based is manifestly untenable. The widow her self may be incapable of derogating from her own grant and disputing the alienation which she has herself made; but as has been said already	 surrender is not an alienation and as the reversioner does not derive his title from her	 there is no principle of law under which the acts of the widow could bind him. As Sulaiman J. pointed out in the case just referred to	 that if the reversion were a grantee from the widow	 he would not only have been stopped from challenging the alienation during her lifetime	 but would have been equally estopped from challenging it after her death; admittedly that is not the case(1). It is true that the surrender benefits the reversioner but the benefit comes to him under the provision of general law as a result of self effacement by the widow. No estoppel can possibly be founded on the receipt of such bene (1) Vide Lachini Chand vs Lachho	 I.L.R. 49 All. (2) Vide I.L.R. 49 All. 334 at 346. 355 Coming now to the third ground	 it is certainly true that a surrender is a voluntary act on the part of the widow and she is under no legal or moral obligation to surrender her estate. Instances do arise where an alienee has paid valuable and substantial consideration for a property on the expectation of enjoying it so long as the widow would remain alive and his expectations have been cut short by a surrender on the part of the widow	 which no doubt benefits the reversioner in the sense that he gets the inheritance even during the widow 's lifetime. On the other hand	 a person	 who takes transfer from a Hindu widow	 acts with his eyes open. If the transfer is without any legal necessity	 there is a risk always attached to the transaction	 and there is no law	 as we have already 	explained	 which secures to him necessarily an estate for life. A man making a purchase of this character is not expected to pay the same value which he would pay if the purchase were made from a full owner. Be that as it may	 even assuming that the court is not incompetent to impose conditions on the reversions ' right of recovering possession of the property during the widow 's lifetime on grounds of equity	 justice and good conscience in proper cases	 it is clear that in the case before us no equitable considerations at all arise. The appellants are not alienees from the widow ; they came upon the land as trespassers with	out any right and it is the law of limitation that has legalised what was originally a clear act of usurpation. They have enjoyed their property since 1925	 and as the title which they have acquired is not available against the reversionary interest	 we do not see any reason sanctioned by law or equity for not allowing the reversions their full legal rights. The result is that in our opinion the decision of the High Court is right and this appeal must stand dismissed with costs. Appeal dismissed. Agent for respondents Nos. I & 2 : A. C. Dave.

Where a Hindu widow surrenders her widow 's estate to the reversioners	 after a third person has acquired title to the properties by adverse possession against her	 the reversioners are entitled to recover possession of the properties from that person immediately as heir 's of the last male holder. The person in adverse possession is not entitled to remain in possession till the death of the widow. So far as the legal consequences are concerned there is no material difference in this respect between an adoption and an act of surrender by the widow. As a surrender by a Hindu widow does not convey any title to the reversioners	 but is only a voluntary act of self effacement by the widow	 she can make a valid surrender under Hindu law even after another person has acquired title by adverse possession against her. The reversioners do not take the property subject to the rights created by the widow. Surrender by the widow and acceptance by the reversioner are not matters of contract. The estate vests in the reversioner by operation of law without any act of acceptance on the part of the reversioner. L/B(D)2SCI 8(a) 340 The view that	 as the widow herself is incapable of disput ing the title of alienee	 or of the person who has obtained title by adverse possession	 a like disability attaches to the reversioner	 is also unsound as the reversioner does not derive title from the widow even in the case of a surrender. Assuming that the court has power to impose conditions on the reversioners ' right to recover possession during the lifetime of the widow on considerations of equity	 justice and good conscience and to prevent the widow	 by her own act	 from prejudicing the interests she has created	 no such equitable considerations arise in favour of persons who have come upon the land	 as trespassers and claim title by adverse possession. Subbamma vs Subrahmanyam (I.L.R. 39 Mad. 1035)	 Sundrasiva vs Viyyamma (I.L.R. 	 Arunachala vs Arumuga (I.L.R. 	 Lachmi vs Lachho (I.L.R. 49 All. 334) and Basudeo vs Baidyanath (A.I.R. 1935 Pat. 175) disapproved. Ram Krishna vs Kausalya 	 Raghuraj Singh vs Babu Singh (A.I.R. 1952 All. 875) approved. Vaidyanatha vs Savitri (I.L.R. commented upon.