Shivani Thakur
Published on: April 8, 2022 at 18:50 IST
The Bombay High Court answered the question of whether the Principle of Relation back is Application in a Case of a son adopted post the demise of the husband of the adopting lady in the negative.
“An adopted son may have Right in future in the Property which the family may acquire after his adoption, with regard to the Property which has vested in any particular person before his adoption, the adoption does not vest in him any right with regard to that Property.” Justice Shrikant D. Kulkarni observed…
The Bench hearing a Property Dispute whereby an adopted son had sold the Properties belonging to the late husband of his adopted mother.
Her husband had one daughter, Prawatibai. Both, mother and daughter, Objected to Shivaji’s Claim over the property.
Shivaji (adopted son) submitted that all ties of the child in the natural family will stand Terminated from the Date of Adoption.
Replying on Hiralal vs. Board of Revenue, he stated that if the Widow of a Co-parcencer adopts a son, the adopted son become a Co-parcencer with surviving Co-parcencer of the adopted father and the same interest which his adopted father would have in the property had he been living.
The adopted child by the widow of deceased co-parcener become the child of the deceased Co-parcener from the date of death of the Co-parcener.
“Under the old Hindu Law the adoption had the effect of relating the adoption back to the date of death of the father. The adopted son was deemed to be in existence at the time when the father died. That fiction of relation back as a result of adoption is no more available in view of section 12 of the Hindu Adoptions and maintenance Act, 1956.” High Court noted…
It added,
“After coming into force of Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956, the child adopted by the widow of the Co-parcener, does not get the status of the child deceased Co-parcener from the date of the death of Co-parcener. As such adopted son/original Defendant No.1 cannot claim share in the Suit Property, by stepping into the shoes of his late father who died long before in the year 1965.”
The Court held that according to the Section 8 of The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, Kausalyabai being widow and Parwatibai being daughter would get one half share each in the Suit Property left behind by Sopanrao.
Further the Court added that her half share would devolve upon her daughter Parwatibai and adopted son Shivaji. In view of the Section 15 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956.
Also Read: Right To Property of Muslim Women