Case: S. S. Munna Lal Vs. S. S. Rajkumar And Others

the estate was merely inchoate, for she had a mere right to be maintained out of the estate and that her right continued to retain that character till actual division was made and the share declared by the preliminary decree was separated and delivered to her : on her death before actual division the inchoate interest again reverted to the estate out of which it was carved. Counsel relied upon the judgment of the Judicial Committee in Pratapmull Agarwalla v. Dhanbati Bibi, 63 Ind App 33 : (AIR 1936 PC 20 ) in support of his plea that under the Mitakshara law, when the family estate is divided a wife or mother is entitled to a share, but is not recognised as the owner of such share until the division of the property is actually made, as she has no pre-existing right in the estate except a right of maintenance, Counsel submitted that this rule of Hindu law was not affected by anything contained in S. 14 of the Hindu Succession Act.16. By S. 14(1) the Legislature sought to convert the interest of a Hindu female which under the Sastric Hindu law would have been regarded as a limited interest into an absolute interest and by the Explanation thereto gave to the expression "property" the widest connotation. The expression includes property acquired by a Hindu female 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. By S. 14(l) manifestly it is intended to convert the interest which a Hindu female has in property however restricted the nature of that interest under the Sastric Hindu law may be into absolute estate. Pratapmulls case, 63 Ind App 33: (AIR 1936 PC 20 ) undoubtedly laid down that till actual division of the share declared in her favour by a preliminary decree for partition of the joint family estate a Hindu wife or mother, was not recognised as owner, but that rule cannot in our judgment apply after the enactment of the Hindu Succession Act. The Act is a codifying enactment, and has made far reaching changes in the structure of the Hindu law of inheritance, and succession. The Act confers upon Hindu females full rights of inheritance, and sweeps away the traditional limitations on her powers of dispositions which were regarded under the Hindu law as inherent in her estate. She is under the Act regarded as a fresh stock of descent in respect of property possessed by her at the time of her death. It is true that under the Sastric Hindu Law, the share given to a Hindu widow on partition between her sons or her grandsons was in lieu of her right to maintenance. She was not entitled to claim partition. But the Legislature by enacting the Hindu Womens Right to property Act, 1937 made a significant departure in that branch of the law; the Act gave a Hindu widow the same interest in the property which her husband had at the time of his death, and if the estate was partitioned she became owner in severalty of her share, subject of course to the restrictions on disposition and the peculiar rule of extinction of the estate on death actual or civil. It cannot be assumed having regard to this development that in enacting S.14 of the Hindu Succession Act, the Legislature merely intended to declare the rule enunciated by the Privy Council in Pratapmulls case, 63 Ind App 33: (AIR 1936 PC 20 ). Section 4 of the Act gives an overriding effect to the provisions of the Act. It enacts :"Save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act,(a) any text, rule or interpretation of Hindu law or any custom or usage as part of that law in force immediately before the commencement of this Act shall cease to have effect with respect to any matter for which provision is made in this Act :(b) .. . . . .. . . . . .. .. . .. . . . . ....."Manifestly, the Legislature intended to supersede the rules of Hindu law on all matters in respect of which there was an express provision made in the Act. Normally a right declared in an estate by a preliminary decree would be regarded as property, and there is nothing in the context in which S. 14 occurs or in the phraseology used by the Legislature to warrant the view that such a right declared in relation to the estate of a joint family in favour of a Hindu widow is not property within the meaning of S. 14. In the light of the scheme of the Act and its avowed purpose it would be difficult, without doing violence to the language used in the enactment, to assume that a right declared in property in favour of a person under a decree for partition is not a right to property. If under a preliminary decree the right in favour of a Hindu male be regard as property the right declared in favour of a Hindu female must also be regarded as property. The High Court was therefore, in our judgment, in error in holding that the right declared in favour of Khilonabai was not possessed by her, nor are we able to agree with the submission of the learned counsel for Rajkumar that it was not property within the meaning of S. 14 of the Act.17. On that view of the case, by virtue of Ss. 15 and 16 of the Act the interest declared in favour of Khilonabai devolved upon her sons Munnalal and Ramchand to the exclusion of her grandson Rajkumar. The decree passed by the High Court is therefore modified in this respect and the decree passed by the trial Court restored.

Decision (1 = appeal accepted, 0 = rejected): 1

Explanation:
1[ds]16. By S. 14(1) the Legislature sought to convert the interest of a Hindu female which under the Sastric Hindu law would have been regarded as a limited interest into an absolute interest and by the Explanation thereto gave to the expression "property" the widest connotation. The expression includes property acquired by a Hindu female 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. By S. 14(l) manifestly it is intended to convert the interest which a Hindu female has in property however restricted the nature of that interest under the Sastric Hindu law may be into absolute estate. Pratapmulls case, 63 Ind App 33: (AIR 1936 PC 20  ) undoubtedly laid down that till actual division of the share declared in her favour by a preliminary decree for partition of the joint family estate a Hindu wife or mother, was not recognised as owner, but that rule cannot in our judgment apply after the enactment of the Hindu Succession Act. The Act is a codifying enactment, and has made far reaching changes in the structure of the Hindu law of inheritance, and succession. The Act confers upon Hindu females full rights of inheritance, and sweeps away the traditional limitations on her powers of dispositions which were regarded under the Hindu law as inherent in her estate. She is under the Act regarded as a fresh stock of descent in respect of property possessed by her at the time of her death. It is true that under the Sastric Hindu Law, the share given to a Hindu widow on partition between her sons or her grandsons was in lieu of her right to maintenance. She was not entitled to claim partition. But the Legislature by enacting the Hindu Womens Right to property Act, 1937 made a significant departure in that branch of the law; the Act gave a Hindu widow the same interest in the property which her husband had at the time of his death, and if the estate was partitioned she became owner in severalty of her share, subject of course to the restrictions on disposition and the peculiar rule of extinction of the estate on death actual or civil. It cannot be assumed having regard to this development that in enacting S.14 of the Hindu Succession Act, the Legislature merely intended to declare the rule enunciated by the Privy Council in Pratapmulls case, 63 Ind App 33: (AIR 1936 PC 20  ). Section 4 of the Act gives an overriding effect to the provisions of thethe Legislature intended to supersede the rules of Hindu law on all matters in respect of which there was an express provision made in the Act. Normally a right declared in an estate by a preliminary decree would be regarded as property, and there is nothing in the context in which S. 14 occurs or in the phraseology used by the Legislature to warrant the view that such a right declared in relation to the estate of a joint family in favour of a Hindu widow is not property within the meaning of S. 14. In the light of the scheme of the Act and its avowed purpose it would be difficult, without doing violence to the language used in the enactment, to assume that a right declared in property in favour of a person under a decree for partition is not a right to property. If under a preliminary decree the right in favour of a Hindu male be regard as property the right declared in favour of a Hindu female must also be regarded as property. The High Court was therefore, in our judgment, in error in holding that the right declared in favour of Khilonabai was not possessed by her, nor are we able to agree with the submission of the learned counsel for Rajkumar that it was not property within the meaning of S. 14 of the Act.17. On that view of the case, by virtue of Ss. 15 and 16 of the Act the interest declared in favour of Khilonabai devolved upon her sons Munnalal and Ramchand to the exclusion of her grandson Rajkumar. The decree passed by the High Court is therefore modified in this respect and the decree passed by the trial Court restored.