We are Hindu. My maternal grandfather passed away in 2004 without leaving any Will. He had 11 children including my mother. My maternal grandmother had passed away in 2000. The house still stands in his name. When my mother asked for her share in the house, my maternal uncle contended that since the grandfather passed away before 2005 my mother and other sisters do not have any right in the property and it will be divided among brothers only. The property is situated in Mumbai. Just wanted to know if contention of my uncles is correct or not?
If a Hindu makes a Will in respect of assets owned by him, such assets pass on as per the instructions contained in the Will. However, in case no Will is made by a Hindu male, his personal assets will pass on to his legal heirs as per the provisions of Section 8 of Hindu Succession Act, 1956.
As your grandfather passed away without making a Will in respect of the house owned, which I presume was his personal asset and not one belonging to Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), will pass on to his class I legal heirs as per schedule of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Class I legal heirs include sons, daughters, wife and the mother etc. Since mother of your mother had passed away prior to death of your grandfather all the children of your grandfather will inherit the house in equal share immediately on his death. This provision in respect of personal assets of a Hindu are applicable since 17th June 1956 i.e. inception of Hindu Succession Act, 1956. It is the law making a daughter a coparcener of an HUF which was amended from 9th September 2005. As per the law amended in 2005, even daughters have rights equal to that of sons in the HUF property.
Balwant Jain is a tax and investment expert and can be reached on [email protected] and @jainbalwant on Twitter.
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