Theoretical overview
Stridhan
Sridhar is that property on which a female has absolute right. It consists of properties received by way of gifts and presents given to women by her parents, husband, close relatives of parents or husband either at the time of marriage or other occasions or something given in any ceremony. It also includes property acquired by her own ability or property given to her in lieu of maintenance, saving or purchase made with stridhan or bequest from strangers.
Sridhan is of two types –
- Saudayika – gifts given out of love and affection received by women from both sides of the family.
- Non-saudayika – all other kinds of stridhan property acquired by self-exertion.
Non stridhan is the property inherited from a male or female or family received at the time of partition. The women had a limited control on them and they are not its absolute owner. This limitation consisted of inability to transfer to her own heirs.
All this has changed with the coming of the Hindu Succession Act,1956. Section 14 of the same discusses the right of women on her property.
The concept of women intestate –
The concept of limited right and ownership of women over her property was repealed after enactment of Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Section 14 states absolute ownership of rights and property to women.
Section 14(1) states that any property in possession of female Hindu, whether acquired before or after the commencement, shall be held as her full owner. It deals with right of women to claim their property at any time and use or disposal of it according to their wishes.
Object of this section –
- To remove disability
- To provide absolute ownership
- In case of intestate death, the property devolves by succession on her own heirs
- To implement the concept of constitutional equality.
The word property under this section includes property
- By inheritance
- By device
- Partition
- Lieu of maintenance
- Arrears of inheritance
- A gift from any person
- Own skill or exertion
- Purchase
- Prescription
- In any other manner
- Any property held by stridhan
Section 14(2) states the exception which includes property by way of giftor under a will or under decree/order of a civil court or under an award or any other instrument. These are some type of property over which she has limited rights and not absolute.
Section 15 confers the mode and manner of succession of property in respect of the stridhan women dying intestate. The devolution for the same is mentioned under section 16 of hindu succession act. Section 15 applies only to women owner.
List of entry for the succession of intestate deceased female property
- Firstly, to son and daughter including son and daughter of deceased son or daughter and the husband
- Secondly, to heirs of the husband
- Thirdly, to the mother and father
- Fourthly, to heirs of the father
- Lastly, to heirs of the mother
If a female Hindu inherits property and there is no son or daughter, including children of a deceased son or daughter, the property is devolved directly to the heirs of the father; similarly, if the property is inherited from a husband or father-in-law and there is no son or daughter, or children of a deceased son or daughter, the property is devolved directly to the heirs of the husband. The court concluded in Bajaya v. Gopikabai that when female property is reverted to husband heirs, Section 8 of the Hindu Succession Act applies.
Order of succession and manner of distribution
Rules for distribution of property as per the list should be according to rules mentioned under section 16, such rules are as follows:
According to Rule 1, the heirs mentioned in the first entry are preferred over the heirs mentioned in the second entry, and the heirs mentioned in the second entry are preferred over the heirs mentioned in the third entry, and so on. The heirs in the same entry must take the property at the same time. In the event of a deceased Hindu’s pre-deceased son or daughter, if a female has left son or daughter of pre-deceased son or daughter living, such children shall have the part that the deceased female’s son or daughter would have taken if they were alive (Rule 2).
Relevant sections
Section 14 – Property of a female Hindu to be her absolute property –
(1) Any property possessed by a female Hindu, whether acquired before or after the commencement of this Act, shall be held by her as full owner thereof and not as a limited owner. Explanation – In this sub-section, “property” includes both movable and immovable property acquired by a female Hindu by inheritance or devise, or at a partition, or in lieu of maintenance or arrears of maintenance, or by gift from any person, whether a relative or not, before, at or after her marriage, or by her own skill or exertion, or by purchase or by prescription, or in any other manner whatsoever, and also any such property held by her as stridhana immediately before the commencement of this Act.
(2) Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall apply to any property acquired by way of gift or under a will or any other instrument or under a decree or order of a civil court or under an award where the terms of the gift, will or other instrument or the decree, order or award prescribe a restricted estate in such property.
Section 15 – General rules of succession in the case of female Hindus –
(1) The property of a female Hindu dying intestate shall devolve according to the rules set out in section 16 –
(a) firstly, upon the sons and daughters (including the children of any pre-deceased son or daughter) and the husband;
(b) secondly, upon the heirs of the husband;
(c) thirdly, upon the mother and father;
(d) fourthly, upon the heirs of the father; and
(e) lastly, upon the heirs of the mother.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1) –
(a) any property inherited by a female Hindu from her father or mother shall devolve, in the absence of any son or daughter of the deceased (including the children of any pre-deceased son or daughter) not upon the other heirs referred to in sub-section (1) in the order specified therein, but upon the heirs of the father; and
(b) any property inherited by a female Hindu from her husband or from her father-in-law shall devolve, in the absence of any son or daughter of the deceased (including the children of any pre-deceased son or daughter) not upon the other heirs referred to in sub-section (1) in the order specified therein, but upon the heirs of the husband.
Section 16 – Order of succession and manner of distribution among heirs of a female Hindu – The order of succession among the heirs referred to in section 15 shall be, and the distribution of the intestates property among those heirs shall take place according to the following rules, namely: – Rule 1 – Among the heirs specified in sub-section
(1) of section 15, those in one entry shall be preferred to those in any succeeding entry and those included in the same entry shall take simultaneously. Rule 2 – If any son or daughter of the intestate had pre-deceased the intestate leaving his or her own children alive at the time of the intestate’s death, the children of such son or daughter shall take between them the share which such son or daughter would have taken if living at the intestate’s death. Rule 3 – The devolution of the property of the intestate on the heirs referred to in clauses (b), (d) and (e) of sub-section (1) and in sub-section (2) to section 15 shall be in the same order and according to the same rules as would have applied if the property had been the father’s or the mother’s or the husband’s as the case may be, and such person had died intestate in respect thereof immediately after the intestate’s death.
Important case laws
1. C.N. Arunacahala Mudaliar v. C.A. Murugatha Mudallar ( 1953) the court held that the succession of the absolute property of Hindu male will be according to the rules mentioned under Section 8 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. The property that came to a Hindu male from his uncle is considered as absolute property.
2. Atma Singh v. Gurmej Kaur (2017) the court held that even if the mother is remarried, she is entitled to succeed her son’s estate along with class 1 heirs.
3. Chintaram v. Rushibai, (2000)- where a woman inherited property from her second husband and died leaving behind a son from the first husband, a son would take the property.
4. Veera Raghavamma v. G Subbarao (1976)- if she inherits property from her father then sells it and out of sale proceeds, purchases another property, this property again would be her general property and Section Section 15(1).
Points to remember
1. The act divides heir in a different class and in the case where there is no one remaining from one class then the property goes to the next class and so on.
2. Amendment for Hindu Succession Act was passed in 2005. The amendment abolished the rule of survivorship. Like sons, daughters were also made heirs to property and the need for daughter to seek agreement from the male heirs to demand partition of the property was also removed.
3. In order to avoid the complications and consequences of intestate succession, the people in India should adopt to estate planning. Estate planning has multifold benefits such as, it avoids any dispute within the family, guarantees smooth transition of assets from the deceased to the heirs, protects the wealth of the deceased, promotes better tax planning etc.
4. Documents required in the absence of a Will in the case of movable property, the Succession Certificate is required. In the case of immovable property, a Letter of Administration is required. It is issued by the court.
