Unprobated Will inadmissible to cancel an earlier testamentary instrument or defeat a claim for letters of administration.

An unprobated Will cannot be used to prove cancellation of an earlier Will or to defeat a claim for letters of administration based on that earlier Will, because Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act bars establishment of testamentary rights without probate or letters of administration. The bar applies even where the Will is relied on by a defendant, and only a truly collateral use of an unprobated Will is permitted. Where the later Will is asserted to have operative testamentary effect by cancelling the earlier instrument, its due execution and contents must first be proved in probate proceedings. The appeal therefore succeeded in part on admissibility, while the remaining directions were left undisturbed.

---

---

Issues: Whether an unprobated Will could be admitted in evidence to prove cancellation of an earlier Will and defeat a claim for letters of administration based on that earlier Will.

Analysis: Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 bars establishment of a right as executor or legatee under a Will unless probate or letters of administration has been granted. The bar applies even when the document is sought to be relied upon by a defendant, and an unprobated Will may be used only for a truly collateral purpose. A Will said to cancel an earlier Will, when relied on to defeat the earlier testamentary claim, is not merely collateral in nature; its due execution and contents must first be established in probate proceedings. Until then, the document cannot be used to negate the earlier claim to letters of administration.

Conclusion: The unprobated subsequent Will was not admissible for the purpose of proving cancellation of the earlier Will, and it could be relied on only if duly probated according to law.

Final Conclusion: The appeal by the appellants succeeded in part on the admissibility issue, while the remaining directions regarding other documents were left undisturbed.

Ratio Decidendi: An unprobated Will cannot be relied upon to establish or defeat testamentary rights where its use is not merely collateral but is directed to proving the operative effect of the Will itself; probate is required before such reliance is permissible.

---