Intestate property succession prioritizes Class-I heirs over Class-II; legal claims must be based on statutory provisions.

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MANOJ JAIN J U D G M E N T (oral)

1. Petitioners take exception to order 17.04.2025 passed by learned Trial Court whereby their names have been deleted from the array of the parties.

2. Smt. Kanta Devi (since deceased) had filed a suit for partition, injunction and mesne profits.

3. Such suit was directed against six defendants.

4. A property bearing no. C-5A/200, DDA Flats, Janak Puri, New Delhi was owned by Sh. Satya Paul Kaushal. He bequeathed the same in favour of his wife Smt. Pushpa Kaushal by virtue of registered Will dated 09.07.1996. Sh. Satya Paul Kaushal died on 05.06.2012, leaving behind no Class-I legal heir except his wife Sh. Pushpa Kaushal who was, even otherwise, the sole beneficiary of the aforesaid property as per the Will.

5. Smt. Pushpa Devi also, unfortunately, died on 29.04.2021.

6. She died intestate.

7. She also did not leave behind any Class-I legal heir.

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8. The family tree, as annexed with the present petition, is reproduced as under:

9. The suit in question was filed on 21.10.2021 by Smt. Kanta Devi, who is real sister of Sh. Satya Paul Kaushal. She died on 28.01.2022.

10. Defendant nos. 3 to 6 are children of her two sisters i.e. Smt. Kaushalya Devi and Smt. Kamla Devi and, admittedly, her two such sisters had also pre-deceased Smt. Pushpa Kaushal.

11. During pendency of the aforesaid suit, one application was moved from the side of LR of deceased defendant no. 2 whereby he pressed for deletion of names of defendant nos. 3 to 6 from the array of parties. According to him, as per Rules of intestate succession, said defendants were not preferred legal heirs of the deceased Smt. Pushpa Kaushal and, therefore, their names need to be deleted from the array of parties.

12. This Court has gone through the aforesaid family tree and also the relevant provisions of Hindu Succession Act, 1956 .

13. Section 15 of Hindu Succession Act deals with general rule of Signature Not Verified CM(M) 1132/2025 2 Digitally Signed succession in case of female Hindu dying intestate. It reads as under: -

“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 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.”

14. Admittedly, since Smt. Pushpa Kaushal died issueless and her husband had pre-deceased her, in terms of Section 15 (1)(b) of Hindu Succession Act, her property is to devolve upon the heirs of her husband.

15. This takes us to Section 8 of Hindu Succession Act which reads as under:-

“8. General rules of succession in the case of males.―The property of a male Hindu dying intestate shall devolve according to the provisions of this Chapter:―

(a) firstly, upon the heirs, being the relatives specified in class I of the Schedule;

(b) secondly, if there is