Section 22 of the Hindu Succession Act only confers a preferential right to acquire the interest of other heirs and provides for the determination of consideration in case of disagreement. It does not authorize the Court to nullify the transfer or direct the transferees to retransfer the property.

R. C. PATNAIK, J.

( 1 ) THE petitioner became an heir specified in Class 1 of the Schedule to the Hindu Succession Act along with opposite parties 1 to 4 in respect of certain property by virtue of intestate succession under the Act. Opposite parties 1 to 4 having transferred their interest in the property which devolved upon all of them by intestate succession, the petitioner filed an application under S. 22 of the Hindu Succession Act (for short, 'the Act') and miscellaneous case No. 250 of 1977 was registered. The Court determined the consideration at Rs. 250/ -. On 16-2-79 the Court directed opposite parties 5 to 10 to retransfer the property to the petitioner. It further directed that on failure of the opposite parties 5 to 10 to execute the sale deed, the same would be executed by the Court. The petitioner instituted a proceeding for execution of the sale deed and recovery of possession. The sale deed was executed by the Court on the default of opposite parties 5 to 10. Then the difficulty cropped up. It struck to the Court that perhaps under the provisions of S. 22 of the Act the petitioner was not entitled to the reliefs sought by way of an execution before it. It went into the matter in depth and rejected the petition and dismissed the proceeding holding that S. 22 did not authorise the Court to do so.

( 2 ) MR. S. Misra 2, the learned counsel for the petitioner, has strenuously urged that even though the provisions contained in S. 22 might not be sufficiently comprehensive to carry out the purpose underlying the section, the Court should so interpret the provision that the purpose of the beneficial provision is achieved. He has submitted that unless such an interpretation is given, the provision would be meaningless and would not serve the purpose for which it was enacted. Since the party has to approach the court of competent jurisdiction as provided in the explanation to S. 22 under S. 22 (2) for determination of the consideration, the Civil Court ought also to have jurisdiction to confer the benefit in full measure. S. 22 of the Act reads as under :"22. (1) Where, after the commencement of this Act, an interest in any immovable property of an intestate, or in any business carried on by him or her, whether solely or in conjunction with others, devolves upon two or more heirs specified in Class I of the Schedule, and any one of such heirs proposes to transfer his or her interest in the property or business, the other heirs shall have a preferential right to acquire the interest proposed to be transferred. (2) The consideration for which any interest in the property of the deceased may be transferred under this section shall, in the absence of any agreement between the parties, be determined by the Court on application being made to it in this behalf, and if any person proposing to acquire the interest is not willing to acquire it for the consideration so determined, such person shall be liable to pay all costs of or incidental to the application. (3) If there are two or more heirs specified in Class I of the Schedule proposing to acquire any interest under this section, that heir who offers the highest consideration for the transfer shall be preferred. Explanation.- In this section, "court" means the Court within the limits of whose jurisdiction the immovable property is situate or the business is carried on, and includes any other Court which the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify in this behalf. "sub-s. (1) confers a substantive right on an heir who along with another heir or heirs specified in Class I has acquired as heirs specified in Class I interest in any immovable property or business by virtue of any intestate succession to have a preferential right to acquire the interest proposed to be transferred by the other heir or heirs to strangers. Sub-sec. (1) confers only a preferential right. Sub-sec. (2) makes the provision for meeting the contingency where the parties cannot