$-

* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

BEFORE

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE PURUSHAINDRA KUMAR KAURAV

+ CS(OS) 461/2021, I.A. 12522/2021 and I.A. 15734/2021

Between: -

1. GAGANDEEP KAUR

W/O GAGANDEEP SINGH R/O F-168 D, 2ND FLOOR

RAJOURI GARDEN, NEW DELHI- 110027

2. SMT. PAMINDER JUNEJA

W/O SH. NAVJEET JUNEJA

R/O 8, CAMP ROAD, GERRARDS CROSS SL 97PE,

LONDON; U.K

PLAINTIFFS

(Through: Mr. Rajat Aneja, Mr. Aditya Sharma, Mr. Anant Chaitanya

Dutta and Mr. Sanjay Mishra, Advs. for P-1.

Ms. Mohna M. Lal, Ms. Geetali Hazarika and Mr. Nikhil Anand, Advs. for

P-2.) AND

1. RATTANDEEP SINGH GROVER

S/O LATE SH. CHANCHAL SINGH GROVER

R/O H.NO 64, NORTH AVENUE ROAD PUNJABI BAGH,

NEW DELHI -110026

2. VIRAJ VEER SINGH

S/O RATTANDEEP SINGH GROVER

S/O LATE SH. CHANCHAL SINGH GROVER

R/O H.NO 64, NORTH AVENUE ROAD PUNJABI BAGH

NEW DELHI -110026

....DEFENDANTS (Through: Mr. Rajesh Yadav, Senior Advocate with Mr. Arvind K. Gupta, Mr. Abhiesumat Gupta, and Mr. Arun Bhattacharya, Advocates.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ % Reserved on: 02.05.2025 Pronounced on: 02.07.2025 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

JUDGMENT

I.A.-18546/2022( APPLICATION UNDER ORDER VII RULE 11 (A), (B), (C) & (D) CPC ON BEHALF OF THE DEFENDANT NO.1 AND 3, SEEKING REJECTION OF PLAINT)

The present application has been filed by defendant nos. 1 and 2 under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (hereinafter referred to as “CPC”), seeking rejection of the plaint, mainly on two grounds-: i. absence of cause of action; ii) plaint is barred by law under the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988. (Benami Act, 1988). 2. The present suit has been instituted by the plaintiffs seeking a declaration that late Sh. Chanchal Singh was the de facto owner of the suit properties as detailed in paragraph 3 of the plaint. Based on this assertion, the plaintiffs have prayed for partition of the said properties and has further sought a declaration that the Gift Deed dated 24.12.2020, executed in favour of defendant no. 1, as well as, the Gift Deed executed in favour of defendant no. 2, be declared as null and void to the extent of the plaintiff's 1/4^th share in the suit properties.

3. Before delving into the merits of the present application, it is important to understand the pedigree of the parties indicating the current status of each party as on date. The pedigree chart is reproduced below:

Late Sh. Chanchal Singh Grover - late Smt. Rajinder Kaur (Wife)(Deceased defendant)

│

┌─────────────────────┬───────────────────┐

Gagandeep Kaur Smt. Paminder Juneja Rattandeep Singh Grover (Plaintiff No.1) (Daughter) (Plaintiff No.2) (Daughter) (Son / defendant No. 1)

│

Viraj Veer Singh (Grandson / defendant No. 2)

Comparison of Party Status: Old vs New Memo of Parties

4. The pleadings in the plaint insofar as are relevant for deciding of the present application are set out below:-

i. Both plaintiffs are daughters of late Sh. Chanchal Singh, and defendant No.1 is his son. defendant No.2 is the son of defendant No.1. All the parties are Class-I legal heirs of late Sh. Chanchal Singh.

ii. Late Sh. Chanchal Singh used to run chit fund businesses under the names Gursant Trading and Chit Fund Pvt. Ltd. and Sahib Chits (Delhi) Pvt. Ltd. at 4636, Ganesh Bazar, Cloth Market, Fatehpuri, Delhi. Out of the aforesaid business he had earned substantial income.

iii. Out of his earnings, late Sh. Chanchal Singh purchased various immovable properties, either in his name or in the names of defendant No.1 and late Smt. Rajinder Kaur, either jointly or solely.

iv. late Sh. Chanchal Singh passed away intestate on 02.01.2008. The properties acquired from his income are part of the family estate.

v. The plaintiffs are not claiming any properties for which they have executed relinquishment deeds. The present partition suit concerns only the remaining properties, referred to as “Suit Properties”.

vi. The Suit Properties include:-

½ portion of Resid