LAW FOR ALL

Deed of Family Settlement seeking to partition joint family properties cannot be relied upon unless signed by all the co-sharers ? = Deed of Family Settlement seeking to partition joint family properties cannot be relied upon unless signed by all the co-sharers. In the instant case, admittedly, the Respondent No.8, Sau. Pratibha, was not a signatory to the Deed of Settlement dated 8th February, 1967, although, she is the daughter of Bapu Saheb Kante by his first wife. As was held in the case of M.N. Aryamurthy (supra), under the Hindu Law if a Family Arrangement is not accepted unanimously, it fails to become a binding precedent on the co-sharers. Both Mr. Vivek Tankha and Mr. Anoop G. Chaudhary, learned Senior Advocates, brought this point to our notice to indicate that all the co-sharers had not consented to the Deed of Family Settlement which could not, therefore, be relied upon. The argument would have had force had it not been for the fact that acting upon the said Settlement, the appellants had also executed sale deeds in respect of the suit property. Having done so, it would not be open to the appellants to now contend that the Deed of Family Settlement was invalid. As mentioned hereinabove, there is yet another question which goes against the case made out by the appellant, viz., that after the Deed of Family Settlement, even the appellant has executed Conveyances in respect of portions of the suit property, thereby supporting the case of the respondent that the Deed of Family Settlement dated 8th February, 1976, had not only been accepted by the parties, but had also been acted upon.