Frequent Legal Issues Related To Property Matters

Query 1. 

The ancestral property was partitioned among my father and his brothers. After that, my father constructed a house on that property with his income as well as mine. Later my father sold that to my brother-in-law through a sale deed without informing me. My father died last year and I came to know that the sale deed was executed with all manipulated bank transactions. Since it is a partitioned property, will there be any chance to file a suit to cancel that sale deed?

Answer.

The aggrieved party here can surely file a suit for the cancellation of the sale deed as he financially supported and contributed to the construction of the house. This fact makes him a co-owner of the property and based on this, the aggrieved party can file a lawsuit to cancel the sale deed. He can also file a lawsuit based on fraud as all the bank transactions, held for the sale deed, were found to be manipulated. 
Let's discuss the situation and its legal provisions in detail:

1. As per the facts, the property shall not be called ancestral post partition as after the partition the property becomes self-acquired and on this basis, the party has no right to file the lawsuit.
2. But since the aggrieved party has contributed financially to the construction of the property, he becomes the co-owner of the property and if he proves the same, he can claim his right on the property which is in dispute.
3. The aggrieved party is also having pieces of evidence regarding the manipulation of the bank transaction in the sale deed, being the co-owner, the party can file a suit under Section 17 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 which tells us about the concept of Fraud. 

Hence, it can be concluded that the aggrieved party, being the co-owner of the property, can file a lawsuit to get the sale deed canceled for the following reasons:

• Consent of the co-owner wasn’t there.
• Legal Necessities were not fulfilled.
• There is valid evidence of manipulation or fraud of the payments regarding the sale deed.

Query 2.

My mother was a bedridden patient and owned a property in Maharashtra. She gave me the power to sell the property as I was her only son, as well as Registered Power of Attorney.  A registered release deed was also created which gave me the rights to 50% shares. Unfortunately, my mother passed away amidst the processing of the sale of the property. How can I sell this property under such circumstances?

Answer.

For the sale of the property after the death of the Mother, the son must address certain legal as well as procedural requirements. A detailed explanation of how the son can proceed and complete the sale of the property as per all the relevant legal provisions. 

1. Effect of Registered Power of Attorney (RPOA) upon the death of the Principal:
   According to section 201 of the Indian Contract Act, of 1872, the Power of Attorney (POA) granted by the principal (in this case, Mother), even though registered, becomes void upon the death of the Principal. Hence the Power of Attorney which the son holds in this case no longer grants him the authority to sell the property after the mother’s demise.
2. Rights under the Release deed:
   The mother transferred 50% ownership of the property to the son during her lifetime, following the Registered Release Deed. The Release Deed is valid and enforceable under Section 17(1)(b) of the Registration Act, 1908, and the 50% share mentioned in the Release Deed is now the property of the son after the death of his mother.
3. Inheritance of Remaining 50% shares:
   As per section 15(a) of the Hindu Succession Act,1956, the son of any dying female Hindu intestate shall be the first heir of her property. And in the given scenario, the son gains the other half of the property by the inheritance rights.

After all this, the son can now move to the local revenue office for the Mutation of the property to get all the legal and official records updated as this is essential for establishing legal ownership, enabling the son to sell the property. 
Hence, It can be easily understood that, here in this case, the death of the mother shall not be a restriction regarding the sale of the property as with certain provisions mentioned above, the son becomes the legal owner of the property and he can sell that as per his wishes. 

Query 3.

My father gave an unconditional settlement deed to my daughter 2.5 years ago, when she was a minor. It is a self-acquired property of my father. Now my father is planning to file a suit to challenge the settlement deed that was given earlier by him when my daughter was a minor. Can he file suit against the settlement deed?

Answer.

An unconditional settlement deed can be defined as a legal document that gives the right to freely dispose of the property, to the beneficiary. Two main things about this deed are:

• This type of deed is irrevocable.
• There are no conditions in the deed that bind the beneficiary.

Here, in this case, the father executed the deed in the favor and best interest of the minor daughter of the aggrieved party, regarding his self-acquired property. Let's delve into the situation in detail:

Irrevocability: As per the judgment of Santharaju & Another V. Chinnamma & Others, given by the Madras High Court, this becomes very clear that with reference to the Transfer of Property Act, settlement deeds are generally considered irrevocable, once validly executed. 

Rights of the Minor: As mentioned in Section 14(1) of The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, tells us about the fact that a daughter who receives any property through a settlement deed, is having a pre-existing right that can give her absolute ownership over the property and this also applies to the daughters who were minor at the time of the settlement. 

Minor’s capacity: There may be arguments regarding the minor holding property, but Section 8 of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956, states that the natural guardian of any minor (in this case the father of the minor girl, “is asking the query”), have the power to deal with the property of the minor, for the best interest. 
From all the above points, it can be concluded that one can face significant challenges if he wants to successfully revoke the settlement deed. Here, the minor girl is protected by certain legal conditions such as the irrevocability of the unconditional settlement deed and the basic rights provided under the Hindu Succession Act, of 1956. 

Query 4.

“A” is the Owner of immovable property, which is in Kolkata, West Bengal. He entered into a Development Agreement with the builder, with a 50:50 ratio, (50% of the total constructed area for the Owner and the remaining 50 % for the Builder) with a condition that the builder will complete the said construction within 24 months, from the date of the agreement. “A” also executed a Development POA in favor of the Builder, and at the time of the agreement, the builder had paid Rs. 5,00,000/- as forfeited money to “A” (Owner). However, things did not turn out as per the terms and even after the expiry of 8 years, no construction work was done. Now A (Owner) wants to cancel the agreement as well as the POA. What is the Procedure? What options are available to the owner, keeping in mind that in any circumstances, “A” doesn’t want to continue with this builder?

Answer.

There are numerous provisions in The Indian Contract Act, of 1872 and also in the Specific Relief Act, of 1963 under which legal notice can be communicated by ‘A’ to the builder stating that he is canceling both the agreement and the Power of Attorney, which will protect the interests of ‘A’.

Before we assess and analyze the reasons as well as the tactics involved in the contract’s abrogation, let us dwell upon the reasons for the contract termination:
1.    Reasons for Termination: 

• Breach of Contract by Frustration: Since the builder is not able to perform the obligations falling under the contract and “A” is entitled to seek the termination of the Agreement based on the Principle of Frustration given under Section 56 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, in which, the frustration may also include any delay in performances. Thus “A” is said to be entitled to claim the contract termination.
• Non-Completion of Performance: As defined in Section 39 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, “A” upholds the authority to terminate the position of the contractor based on non-performance of the act which was essential to be done as per the terms of the contract. 

2.    Steps to Take for the Termination: 

• Legal Notice: ‘A’ has to send a notice regarding the breach and intention to terminate the agreement and the power of attorney to the builder.
• Declaration Suit: Under Section 34 of the Relief Specific Act, 1963, “A” shall also apply in the court to declare that the cessation of termination is in force and shall further apply for an injunction to the builder.
• Compensation: “A” can also claim damages for breach of contract as per Section 73 of the Indian Contract Act. 

3.    Revocation of Power of Attorney: ‘A’ shall issue a notice of revocation to the builder and in addition, shall ensure that it is registered in the Sub registrar’s office as required under Section 201 of the Indian Contract Act. 
At last, the Development Agreement along with POA will be legally canceled. It will safeguard the interest of "A". These options will also ensure that A will not have to deal with this builder under any circumstance.

Query 5.

After my father died, the property of my father was acquired by my mother and she gifted that to her grandson. I am not sure if there is a will or not. It's been 5 years since my father died but to date, no copy of the will has been shared with me. When I asked her about the same she said that the will is not there. She claimed that it was my father's wish to give his property to his grandson. I presume the property may have been transferred to my mother by way of nomination. But does that thing give her the right to gift the property to her grandson without the consent of her class 1 legal heir? How to be sure if there is a will or not?  Now, if there is no will, can the gift deed become null? Do I have to send a legal notice to my mother and her grandson asking for a claim on the property?

Answer.

The aggrieved party here, being the Class I heir, has so many rights under the Hindu Succession Act, of 1956. As per Section 8 of the act, the property of the Hindu male who died without a will shall be transferred to his Class I heirs equally which include the widow of the deceased, sons, daughters, and mother. The aggrieved party is entitled to get an equal share in the property along with his mother and siblings. 
Let's begin with the queries asked by the aggrieved party regarding his rights on his father’s property:

1. Does a will exist or not? 
   If the mother claims that there is no will and it was the wish of the deceased to gift his property to his grandson, having no proof, then the aggrieved party can claim equal shares in the property as a Class I heir. 
   Checking for a will:
   The aggrieved party can check the existence of will by visiting the sub-registrar’s office or any probate court if any proceedings were occurred in the past regarding the will.
2. If the mother got the property by nomination, then does she have the right to gift the same without the consent of Class I heirs?
   As it has been already discussed, if there is no will then the property will be shared equally among the Class I heirs, So, according to that, the mother has the right to gift the property to her grandson but only from her share which she has acquired. 
   The aggrieved party can challenge the gift deed to get canceled, as it is affecting his legal rights.
3. Can the gift deed have become null if there was mere existence of the will?
   Yes, the aggrieved Party can take certain legal actions claiming the gift deed to be void as per the provisions of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. If there is no will, then the gift deed can be potentially declared null or invalid if the mother has gifted the entire property to her grandson instead of just giving him from her share.
4. Does the aggrieved party have to send a legal notice to his mother and her grandson asking for a claim on the property?
   As per the situation and the absence of the will, the aggrieved party has the right to claim his share in the property, and for this, it is advisable to send a legal notice to the mother and her grandson mentioning the claims to avoid any further future confusions, and if they don’t want to get into legal complications, then they can opt for mediation. 

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the article lists some common legal problems that arise relating to property matters. It offers some guidelines to resolve issues such as how to deal with family property disputes, power of attorney troubles, canceling settlement deeds, breach of development agreements, and inheritance of property. The main aspect is that enactments such as the Indian Contract Act, the Hindu Succession Act, and a lot more ensure people with the wish to enforce their rights in different ways. This depicts the various situations – whether it is about filing a suit, sending a legal notice, or going for mediation – where one needs to ascertain their position vis-a-vis the law and how to go about it to resolve issues concerning property disputes in the most efficient manner possible.