HUF property
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 04 March 2011
This query is : Resolved
Hi,
Our's is a HUF property. We are a family of 5 with two brothers and one sister. My father had given a piece of the ancestral land to our sister creating a sale deed as though he had sold that land to our sister without informing us. We both brothers had not signed on this sale deed. Is this sale deed valid? Now our father and mother are no more and we brothers would like to divide the property among ourselves as per parent's wish, as according to them, they had already given the property to our sister. We also want to give the property to our sister which the father had given to our sister by signing on that sale deed. Does our sister have the right in the rest of the property which we want to divide among ourselves? Our sister is now saying that she will not sign the document. We brothers had given a lot of money to our parents for their expenditures throughout lifetime, also taken care of them including the medical expenses. Property is the only source for us now. Also, can we divide the property among ourselves? Incase our sister wants share, requst you to let us know as to how can we get it divided without giving the property to her? Your help is higly obliged.
thanks & regards
Avil
R.Ramachandran
(Expert) 04 March 2011
Your father being the 'karta' of the HUF was fully competent to dispose of any of the HUF property to anybody and to utilise the sale proceeds for the benefit of the HUF. For this, he does not need the consent of the members of the HUF.
Thus, sale of any part of the HUF property by the Karta of the HUF to your sister or to anybody else cannot be questioned by you now.
The HUF will continue with the rest of its properties. So long as your sister is also a member of the HUF, by no means you will be in a position to exclude her from the benefit of the HUF. In other words, she is entitled to her share in the property. The HUF having spent for her needs is no ground to deny her share in the HUF now. Similarly, any one of you having contributed substantially to the HUF or to the expenses of your parents is also not a ground to say or claim a bigger share from the HUF. The parent's wish cannot in any way override the interests of the members of the HUF - i.e. equal share in the HUF. The fact is your sister is entitled to her 1/3rd share from the HUF.
Chanchal Nag Chowdhury
(Expert) 04 March 2011
While on the one hand U tried to pose as a benefactor to your sister, your latter statement betrays your intentions to the contrary. In any event, forget the gift given to your sister. She is still entitled to a share.
