Party1 is my (Male, 50) family, the counterparty (father,mother, my late brother family). No sister. All are in Pune but originally from Bihar & properties discussed here are in Bihar. My mother is abusive to all not obeying her including husband. I have ten years digital call records to prove. 4 years ago, we sold “CY” Ancestral property (Bihar City) based on written family arrangement(20% to each son, and 30% on father name with my son as nominee, 30% to mother with my late brother’s son as nominee). Tax returns, call etc match to it. “VY” ancestral property (“Khatian property”,Bihar village) was received by my father as share from his cousins 35 years ago through a family settlement. 6 months ago, I agreed to the sale of “VY” ancestral property with the condition that the distribution shall match Family Arrangement for “CY”, and also his own written(2 years back) plan similar to “CY” plan stating 50-50 split between two sons with a gift deed to a helper, agreed by us verbally. (Have records of relatives & non-relatives to confirm 50-50 split). Helper gift done by father recently. 3 weeks ago, my mother fought, and tried to frame me in false case to seize all properties. The counterparty (my father under pressure) joined and planning to deprive me of my rights. They received advance payment in their joint account (I am not in that) despite my objections to them & buyer. In reply to my lawyer’s criminal breach notice, they offered 1/4 share as a charity after “VY” sales is over. They falsely claimed that I received excess payment for “CY” City ancestral property as I was in need so, they adjust excess against “VY” sale. Just now, I have responded with transcript of 10 yrs calls and tax/ bank transactions etc that they are lying. I have withdrawn my assent to the sale of “VY”, and accused them of cheating with proof. (A) Now my old father, under pressure, may say that he won't agree to old plan, verbal agreement etc . Can he do that for “VY” ancestral property or he cannot? I think he can limit me to 1/3 for all remaining Ancestral property? (Note: he gifted helper from “VY” property as per his plan, allowed if coparcener agreed. I agreed as his full written plan to be followed.) (B) My lawyers says(1) criminal breach is valid (2) First file for injunction for “VY”. I want to seek not 1/3 as per law but half as per written plan for “VY”. I have call records, docs etc to prove my point. (3) Partition suit not ok. If I initiate, mothers get share too so, I will be left with quarter share, offered to me. I want nothing if it is not according to written plan. (4) I think for remaining ancestral property (other than “VY”), they can insist to follow the rule of 1/3. (C) My lawyer says that file criminal case in Pune as all parties are based here. If counterparty denies my rights to “VY” property in Pune court, I can happily go to village court as it is more troublesome for them to go to village court. Please advise on three points above.
First answer received in 30 minutes.
Lawyers are available now to answer your questions.
1) is written family arrangement registered
2) un registered agreement is not admissible in evidence except for collateral purposes to prove possession
3) you should act as per your lawyer advice as they have gone through written agreement and all other correspondence exchanged till date
4)you can seek stay order restraining sale of property and for declaration that you have x share in property
5) you can file case of criminal breach of trust in Pune
As you don't want partition, you will have to file a declaratory suit seeking a declaration that the verbal agreement is valid and subsisting and for enforcing that agreement against your father
Criminal proceedings are a waste of time in such a case
(A) The property so called ancestral property in the village was obtained by your father out of a partition from his cousins hence it cannot be categorized as ancestral property, therefore as per law, if your father is not willing to give any share in it to you or to anyone, then nobody can claim any share in it as a right.
(B) Your father's voluntary act of orally agreeing to give any share in the property to you and not honoring it will not come under criminal breach of trust. The call records in your possession are not considered as valid and legally enforceable document to support your claim as what you have mentioned here. Your mention about the written plan is not a document which would be enforceable in law hence if you decide to fight in the court of law on that basis, you will not get any share in this property neither you will be able to win the case which is ab initio not maintainable.
(C) if at all you want to lodge any criminal complaint against them then you may have to do so only in the place where the cause of action arose and not on any false promise or misguidance made by anyone.
Dear Client,
As "VY" is ancestral property, under Hindu Succession Act, 1956, it is co-parcenary property, meaning that all male members (including you and your brother) have an equal right to it by birth. However, your father's share is also ancestral, and he can distribute his share as he pleases during his lifetime. This means he can choose to go against the previous verbal or written family agreements unless those agreements are legally binding. Since there was a written plan similar to the "CY" plan that was verbally agreed upon, your father’s ability to alter the distribution depends on whether that plan was legally documented and agreed upon by all coparceners. If it was only verbal, it might be difficult to enforce it legally without strong supporting evidence. If your father decides not to honor the previous plan, the default legal rule would apply, potentially limiting your share to 1/3 of his share in the remaining ancestral property.
Filing for an injunction to prevent the sale of "VY" property is a valid legal remedy. An injunction can temporarily halt the sale until the dispute is resolved. This would protect your interest while the case is ongoing. File a criminal breach of trust case in Pune if you have substantial evidence to support the claim that your family is dishonestly depriving you of your rightful share. Your lawyer’s advice against filing a partition suit is based on the fact that it would legally entitle your mother to a share, potentially reducing your portion to 1/4, as per Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Filing a criminal case in Pune is feasible since all parties reside there, and it would be more convenient for you. If necessary, be prepared to move the case to the village court in Bihar, which may put additional pressure on the counterparty.
Dear Sirs, I am thankful to you all for sparing your time to answer this query. Dear Mr. Sethi, Mr. Rampurawala and Mr. Miu, My lawyer suggested filing a title suit for specific plots (with Khata & Khesra Numbers) of “VY” and claiming share in accordance with the family arrangement, and requesting that the sales of entire “VY” should be halted until title is confirmed. Or alternatively, file at court for declaring the property as joint property. In case the counterparty sells and registers without me, file for criminal case. Hope this is acceptable and in accordance with your advice. Dear Mr. Sethi, As I work in contracts/procurement, I read your various articles and court judgments. I humbly request you to clarify points 1 and 2. If my following understanding is mistaken, please do correct me. In Tek Bahadur Bhujil v. Debi Singh Bhujil and Ors. (AIR 1966 SC 292), the SC agreed on a family arrangement, arrived at orally, with a memo recorded in writing. My understanding is that only if a new right (other than the usual settlement) is created, it should be registered as a document of title. A fair and balanced memo cannot be denied. Thank you all again. I greatly appreciate your attention and time.
Th issue would be whether it is memorandum of family arrangement or deed of partition
2) if it merely records shares of all family members as per oral settlement it does not require to be stamped and registered
3) if it provides for division of family properties it would be required to be stamped and registered and is in admissible in evidence
4) but it is well settled law that it can be used for collateral purposes to show possession of property
5) it does not confer title to property
6)
The SC inin the matter of ‘Ravinder Kaur Grewal & Ors vs. Manjit Kaur & Ors’ addressed the question regarding the registration of Memorandum of family settlement
In this case, the SC held that in case a memorandum of family settlement is just recording the terms of settlement between the parties that was previously agreed between them then registration of such document is not compulsory as it in itself is not creating or extinguishing any right or title.
On the contrary, if the memorandum contains the terms and recitals of family arrangement made under that document then registration of MOFS would be compulsory. In the said judgment, SC reiterated the observations of its earlier judgement that a MOFS prepared after family arrangement was already made for the purpose of recording the information or for the information of the court, is not required to be registered.
Dear Client,
Filing a title suit for specific plots of the "VY" ancestral property is indeed a viable approach. This suit would help in establishing your share according to the family arrangement and could also request a halt on the sale of the property until the title is confirmed. Alternatively, seeking a declaration that the property is joint can also be pursued. If the counterparty proceeds with the sale and registration without including you, filing a criminal case could be considered, particularly if there is evidence of fraud or breach of trust. A well-documented memo reflecting a fair and balanced arrangement can be considered valid even without formal registration, provided it accurately represents the agreement and intentions of the parties involved. Therefore, your understanding is correct, i.e. a family arrangement recorded in writing and supported by clear evidence can be upheld, but if it involves creating new rights or significant changes, registration might be required to establish it formally.
Thank you Mr. Sethi and Mr. Kalaiselvan for providing judgement references, they are relevant and useful. Thank you Mr. Miu for answer and detailed steps. Much obliged.
thanks for your appreciation
You are welcome for your appreciations.