Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in India

the house will be divided equally between you and your sister. as she is a minor a guardian will have to be appointed to safeguard her interest.

12.03.2014

Dear Madam,

India does not have uniform laws for succession / inheritance for its citizens, whether it is testamentary succession or non-testamentary succession. The laws relating to succession is dependent upon religious beliefs of the persons or group of persons.

Inheritance could be of two kinds : testamentary inheritance, which means inheritance as per the Will of the deceased and non-testamentary succession, where the deceased dies without making a Will. Since your deceased parents did not declare one or more persons specifically to succeed to their properties, it shall devolve as per respective religious laws.

The laws of non-testamentary or intestate succession / inheritance could be classified in five different groups :

* Laws of succession applicable to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists;

* Laws of succession applicable to Parsis;

* Laws of succession applicable to Christians and Jews;

* Laws of succession governing Muslims; and

* Laws of succession in case of inter-faith marriages, under the Special Marriages Act, 1954.

1. The procedure to be followed is :

You will first need to do the transfer of title of your parents estate i.e house completed jointly in your name and your sister's name. Since your sister is still a minor, an adult "relative" will have to be named as her Administrator to sign on behalf of your younger sister, all documents related to the transfer of the house jointly, in both your names.

2. Attested copies of all title deeds establishing your parents' title in the property will need to be provided to the Tahsildar / Registrar along with the application for transfer of name from your deceased parents to both your names. You will need to bear the nominal transfer fees as indicated by the Tahsildar / Registrar.

3. Refer Point (1) above.

Regards,