RULES OF PROPERTY SIUCCESSION

Advocate S Selvakumar | Advocate at Koramangala | Advocate at HSR

THE Hindu Succession Act 1956 popularly known as Act 30 of 1956 was passed by both the houses of parliament and received  the assent of the president as on June 17 1956. After the enactment, various states have amended the Act, and the union government has also proposed to amend the Act to give equal status to women in joint family property.

The succession to the estate of a deceased Hindu is not automatic, and Hindu Succession Act contains various provisions like re-marriage of a widow, murder and conversion to other religious, which disqualifies the legal heir to succeed to the estate.

Judgment of Supreme Court

 Recently the Supreme Court in one of its judgments held that if the son murders his father, the murderer  is not entitled to inherit the property of the deceased father, who was murdered. It further held that it is not only the son, who is a murderer, but his entire stock, his wife, children are also not entitled to succeed to the assets of the deceased.

 One Sri Singaperumal the only son who had murdered his father Ramaswamy Konar, thus incurred the disqualification clause. But his wife Vellikannu, petitioned the Supreme Court seeking inheritance of the property of her father-in-law. The court decided against the petitioner and  held that “a person who has murdered a person, through whom he wants to inherit the property, stands disqualified on that account. That means he will be deemed to have pre-deceased, then the when a son cannot succeed then the wife who succeeds to the property through the husband cannot also lay claim to the property of her father -in-law.

Remarriage

   Section 24 of the Act refers to widows remarrying. The Act does not disqualify all the widows who are entitled to succeed, but only certain heirs, who are widows.

  The disqualification is only in case of intestate succession and not in case of testate succession, where the testator bequeaths his property through will. The following category of heirs  are disqualified from succeeding to the estate of the deceased:

            1)         Widow of a pre-deceased son.

            2)         Widow of a pre-deceased son of pre-deceased of son.

            3)         Widow of a brother.

  First two are class first heirs and the third one is a class second heir. The section further states, the above mentioned widows are disqualified, if they are remarried on the date on which succession opens. The succession opens on the date of the death of the person, whose estate is being inherited. If they marry subsequent to that date, they do not incur any disqualification under this section.

Conversion

  Section 26 of the act refers to the position of legal heirs who are converted to other religions. The section deals with such converts, who are converted to another religion even before the commencement of Act which is 17/06/1956 and those who are converted after the commencement of the Act.

 The children born to such converted and their descendants are disqualified from in heritage the property of any of their Hindu relatives, provided such children, their descendents are not Hindus at the time when succession opens. Thus, a very interesting situation emerges through the words used in s section. “Shall be disqualified from inheriting the property of any of their Hindu relatives, unless such children or descendants are Hindus at the time when succession opens.” So if the children or descendants of a person who have ceased  to be Hindu by conversion to other religious are reconverted to Hindu religion at the time when succession opens, they are not disqualified from inheriting  the property of any of their Hindu relatives.

Murderer

 We have discussed this aspect at the beginning of the article. Section 25 of the Act states that when a person.

1) Who commits the murder or 2) Who abets the commission of a                                murder,

Shall be disqualified from inheriting the property of person murdered or any other property in furtherance of the succession to which he or she committed or abetted the commission of murder.

This section is applicable where a person commits the murder or even abets the commission of a murder whose property is to be inherited. Thus, a person who commits or abets the commission of a murder is not entitled to inherit the property of the person who was murdered. The Act further expands the disqualification to any other property in furtherance of succession to which one committed the murder or abetted the commission of the murder.

 A son who commits or abets the murder of his father, a husband who commits or abets the murder of his wife or a wife who commits or abets the murder of her husband are not entitled to succeed to the property of the persons who were murdered.

 Section 27, of the Act stipulates how the property of deceased devolves, when legal heirs invites disqualifications under this Act. The property of the deceased will devolve as though, the disqualified person has died before the person who was murdered. His existence is not considered at all for development of the property. Recent Supreme Court Judgment has debarred entire stock of the murderer, his wife, children from succeeding to the property of deceased.