Family property dispute
Guest
(Querist) 28 February 2012
This query is : Resolved
Respected Sir/Madam,
I am Pran (23 yrs.) from Burdwan, West Bengal. At this moment I am involved in a property dispute case, which has been filed by my grandmother (82 yrs.) against me. The details are as follows:
My late grandfather purchased a two storied residential house property in 1959 in the name of his wife (my present grandmother). As the property deed was in the name of my grandmother, hence the municipality tax bill and the electricity bill was also in the name of her. But the mutation of the land was never done in her name as because both my grandfather & grandmother never realized its importance and hence ignored it completely.
They had two sons and one daughter, the elder son has one son, the younger son had two sons (me and my elder brother) and the daughter has one son and one daughter.
In November, 2009 my grandmother due to her old age willfully gifted the said residential two storied house property to me (her grandson) and her elder son through a ‘registered gift deed’, and the partition was done in such a way that the first floor belongs to me and the ground floor belongs to her elder son, and both the floors have different entry/exits.
Noticeably, the first floor (which was originally given to me) should have been given to my father (my grandmother’s younger son) but he denied his claim and thought of me as the rightful/ultimate successor of the said part of this ancestral property.
My grandmother willfully denied her daughter any share from the said immovable property as because a major portion of my grandfather’s monetary property was given to her during her marriage, as dowry. My grandfather owned a shop and the monetary gain from selling it was also given to her (no record of these transactions had been kept), and hence she herself also had no objection to such a partition and willfully agreed on her mother’s (my grandmother) wish.
Now, it is evident that day by day the value of immovable property is increasing; hence during the end of 2010 or the beginning of 2011 my grandmother’s daughter and her husband somehow made an estimated valuation of the said immovable property and found it to be of such a considerable amount which can be envied upon.
They then brainwashed my grandmother and forced her to believe that her daughter has been betrayed and she also deserves a share of the house property (although previously we had a mutual agreement on this matter). She gradually took my grandmother’s elder son into confidence and tried the same on my father. But as soon as my father refused and asked his sister not to get involve anymore in his son's property matters, she then immediately along with my grandmother filed a suit on March, 2011 for taking back the gift.
Not to mention that, my grandmother had to file a suit against his elder son also (as he is also the receiver of a part of the gift). But as both my grandmother and his elder son along with her daughter are co-related with a mutual agreement, the elder son had already agreed to give back the gift and hence no case now stands against him and I remain the lone party against whom my grandmother (82 yrs.), her daughter (55 yrs.) and her elder son (60yrs.) are fighting.
My father (my grandmother’s younger son) was ill for last 8 to 10 months and after such a betrayal his condition got more critical when he came to know that a lawsuit has been filed on me by his own mother due to the conspiracy of his sister along with his elder brother. Eventually, he caught pneumonia and died on 3rd July, 2011 and now I am standing alone in this tender age acquainting myself with the court life.
Please! Help me in this matter because I do not think that I can stand in front of the might of my elders, and as a result I may lose the case as because the points on which the case has been filed are comparatively strong and my grandmother is also getting the benefits/sympathies of her old age by the court.
Some of the accusations made on me are follows:
1. My grandmother claims to have agreed to give me a ‘registered power of attorney’, but ultimately I presented another document in front of the sub-registrar and made a registered gift deed without her knowledge.
2. The gift deed was written in English (which was the wish of my grandmother) and now she claims that she is illiterate and only knows how to sign her name in English and Bengali. Hence, she could not read the text matter and I forced her to sign the deed without making her aware of the facts.
3. I have told her to leave the house as she is not the owner now.
It is needless to say that the above accusations are totally false and baseless as because no proof can be presented for point’s no. 1 & 3 and on the other hand I do not have such a tricky brain by which I can fool such an aged/matured lady. But still due to the sympathy of the court my opposition is gaining an upper hand because of her old age.
I am living in this house from 1997 and after the registered gift deed made in my name in 2009 I have changed & included my name in the municipality tax bill and also in the electricity bill but due the suit I could not do the mutation of my part of land in my name. Thus, there are no illegalities or irregularities from my side. But, still if I lose being on the side of the truth then will it be correct/justified?
Advice, and save me from the conspiracy of my elders as because I have no other place to reside and after the untimely death of my father I am in a desperate situation at present.
Thanking in advance.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 28 February 2012
It shall be better for you to avail the specific service of any lawyer and discuss your entire matter with relevant documents.
Sankaranarayanan
(Expert) 28 February 2012
Hope ur lawyer explained the case matter. We don't know about the other part. Of ur case.
Shantilal Pandya
(Expert) 29 February 2012
Gentleman ,
If the gift deed in your favor is unconditional, you are the absolute owner of the property , it is for your grand mother to prove case setup by her . probably both the documents of gift one for you and other for your brother would have been executed at the same time (are there two separate documents of gifts? )in the circumstances the story of forgery may not be accepted by the court, the document is registered one there may be witnesses for admission and execution of the gift deed , there is very heavy burden for the plaintiff to prove facts ,alleged by her the conduct of the grandmother before and after the gift deed will also negative the case of your grandmother , you can EMAIL me the draft of the plaint and the written statement if you have filed in the court and the copy of the gift deeds for both the brothers I would like to examine those pieces because in such cases PLEADINGS have much importance , which cane be analysed in the light of prevailing legal positions, .. you can contact me via phone through LCI if you so think for more please bear in mind that your case requires thurogh legal counselling.
Guest
(Querist) 03 March 2012
Respected Shantilal Pandya sir,
Thank you for your appreciable response, and I would like to clarify the following:
1. Yes, the gift deed was ‘unconditional’.
2. Yes, two separate gift deeds were made, one for me and the other for my late father’s elder brother i.e. elder son of my grandmother.
3. Both the gift deeds were registered at sub-registrar office on 13th November, 2009 & at the same time, during the presence of my grandmother, her elder son, me and several other relatives.
4. Two witnesses signed the registered gift deeds and were also present at the time of execution in the office, those are the ‘lawyer’ who administered the whole gifting process on the request of my grandmother, and the second witness was his assistant.
I would like to add that both the lawyer and his assistant including the ‘sub-registrar’ himself have agreed to provide admissions of their actions of that day, in court, but my grandmother have rejected all their admissions before-hand and had stated that all such admissions would be forgery/false and claimed that we could have bribed the witnesses.
Ultimately, I would reveal that both, the drafts of the plaint and the written statement which I have filed in the court and the copy of the gift deeds have been kept by my lawyer, as because I had no choice but to believe him blindly and hence I could not provide you the copy of them at present, but I will try to fulfill all your requirements if possible.
Please! Advice my next step.
Thanking in advance.
Shantilal Pandya
(Expert) 07 March 2012
the documents referred to by me are to be inspected and analysed ring me up after you send me the copies of the documents
