Delhi District Court
Abhhey Chopra And Anr vs State And Anr on 10 December, 2024
IN THE COURT OF MS. SHILPI SINGH, ACJ-cum-CCJ-cum-ARC, SOUTH
DISTRICT COURTS COMPLEX, SAKET, DELHI
SC No. 101/2024
CNR No. DLST03-001393-2024
1. Mr. Abhhey Chopra
S/o late Mr. Rajnish Chopra
R/o 193A, 2nd floor, Gautam Nagar
New Delhi-110049
2. Ms. Pooja Chopra
D/o late Mr. Rajnish Chopra
R/o 193A, 2nd floor, Gautam Nagar
New Delhi-110049
........Petitioners
Versus
1. State
Through SDM
DC South Office Complex,
M.B. Road, Saket,
New Delhi-17
2. Smart Equity Brokers Pvt. Ltd.
F-88 West District Center
Shivaji Enclave
Rajouri Garden, Opp TDI Paragon
Mall, New Delhi 110027
.........Respondents
Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 1 of 6
Digitally
signed by
SHILPI
SHILPI SINGH
SINGH Date:
2024.12.10
16:23:18
+0530
PETITION FOR GRANT OF SUCCESSION CERTIFICATE UNDER SECTION 372 OF
THE INDIAN SUCCESSION ACT, 1925
1. Date of Institution of Petition : 11.09.2024
2. Date of Judgment : 10.12.2024
3. Decision : Petition Allowed
JUDGMENT
1. Vide this judgment, this Court shall dispose off the petition filed by petitioners for grant of succession certificate qua debts and securities of deceased late Sh. Rajnish Chopra who is stated to have expired on 09.05.2021.
2. In the petition, it is inter-alia pleaded that the petitioners are the legal heirs of Sh. Rajnish Chopra (hereinafter called the deceased) being the children of the deceased and they are the only class-I legal heirs of the deceased and the deceased did not execute any will or testament in favor of anyone distributing his assets and therefore, it is prayed that the certificate for securities of the deceased, as explained in the petition be granted in favor of the petitioner. As far the jurisdiction is concerned, it is stated that the deceased permanently resided at 193A, Second Floor, Gautam Nagar, New Delhi-110049, which is within the jurisdiction of this Court.
3. Notice of this petition was given to the general public by way of publication in the newspaper 'Virat Vaibhav' on 19.10.2024. In response to the notice, no person from the general public came forward to file any objection for issuance of succession certificate in favor of the petitioners.
4. During the summary proceedings conducted as per Section 373 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925, four persons were examined. Petitioners were examined as PW-1 and PW-2 and respondents were examined as RW-1 and RW-2. PW-1 Sh. Abhhey Chopra filed his evidence by way of affidavit as Ex.PW1/1, wherein he reiterated the contents of the petition and relied upon following documents:-
a) Ex.PW1/A i.e. copy of death certificate of deceased Late Sh. Rajnish Chopra.
b) Ex.PW1/B i.e. copy of his aadhar card.
c) Ex.PW1/C i.e. copy of aadhar card of petitioner no.2.
Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 2 of 6 Digitally signed by SHILPI SHILPI SINGH SINGH Date:
2024.12.10 16:23:28 +0530
d) Ex.PW1/D i.e. true copy of demat share holding.
e) Ex.PW1/E i.e. copy of surviving member certificate.
5. PW-2 Ms. Pooja Chopra filed her evidence by way of affidavit as Ex.PW2/1, wherein she reiterated the contents of the petition and relied upon the documents already exhibited as Ex. PW1/A to Ex. PW1/E.
6. RW-1 is the Patwari from the office of SDM Hauz Khas, New Delhi. RW-1 filed his report i.e Ex.RW1/A, prepared by Sh. Ajay Sachdeva, Tehsildar, Hauz Khas as per which, the deceased is stated to have expired on 09.05.2021 and that, he left behind only two legal heirs namely, Abhhey Chopra i.e. petitioner no.1/PW-1 and Pooja Chopra i.e. petitioner no.2/PW-2.
7. RW-2 is the Compliance Officer from Smart Equity Brokers Pvt. Ltd. who brought the record of debts and securities i.e. Ex. RW-2/A (colly, running into 2 pages) in the name of deceased. The witness said that he was authorized by Ex PW-2/1 to appear before the Court and furnish the details and he filed the statement of holdings by NSDL as Ex PW- 2/2 (colly-11 pages). As per RW-2, the deceased had a demat account bearing, DP ID no. IN303948-10019613 with the company. The details of demat holding of the deceased with the company provided by the witness are as follows:
Value of each ISIN No. Name of company No. of shares Total Value share INE748C01038 3I INFOTECH LTD. 150.000 26.65 3997.50 INE364U01010 ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD 200.000 1412.70 282540.00 INE814H01011 ADANI POWER LTD. 1900.000 524.10 995790.00 INE647O01011 ADITYA BIRLA FASHION AND 500.000 289.20 144600.00 INE270A01029 ALOK INDUSTRIES LTD. 7000.000 20.60 144200.00 INE371P01015 AMBER ENTERPRISES INDIA L 8.000 6168.95 49351.60 INE208A01029 ASHOK LEYLAND LTD. 400.000 221.34 88536.00 INE296A01024 BAJAJ FINANCE LIMITED 21.000 6595.30 138501.30 INE032A01023 BOMBAY DYEING & MFG.CO.LTD. 1500.000 206.71 310065.00 INE348B01021 CENTURY PLYBOARDS (I) LTD 900.000 735.25 661725.00 INE274G01010 DHANI SERVICES LIMITED 100.000 69.05 6905.00 INE935N01020 DIXON TECHNOLOGIES (INDIA 10.000 14876.40 148764.00 INE066A01021 EICHER MOTORS LTD. 10.000 4965.45 49654.50 INE285A01027 ELGI EQUIPMENTS LTD. 1.000 556.65 556.65 INE078A01026 EMCO LTD. 3300.000 1.74 5742.00 INE649H01011 EURO CERAMICS LTD. 1500.000 0.00 0.00 INE045J01026 FINEOTEX CHEMICAL LTD. 600.000 334.45 200670.00 INE235A01022 FINOLEX CABLES LTD. 15.000 1118.05 16770.75 INE220J01025 Future Consumer Limited 500.000 0.52 260.00 Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 3 of 6 Digitally signed by SHILPI SHILPI SINGH SINGH Date:
2024.12.10 16:23:38 +0530 INE426D01013 GOA CARBON LTD. 216.000 640.50 138348.00 INE371A01025 GRAPHITE INDIA LTD. 200.000 473.50 94700.00 INE036B01030 GUJARAT AMBUJA EXPORTS LT 1800.000 120.79 217422.00 INE113A01013 GUJARAT NARMADA VALLEY FERTILI 1100.000 561.05 617155.00 INE110D01013 GUJARAT NRE COKE LTD. 40000.000 0.00 0.00 INE026A01025 GUJARAT STATE FERTILIZERS & CH 2310.000 193.84 447770.40 INE982F01036 HATHWAY CABLE & DATACOM LTD 400.000 18.32 7328.00 INE176B01034 HAVELLS INDIA LTD. 154.000 1632.70 251435.80 INE040A01034 HDFC BANK LTD. 260.000 1742.25 452985.00 INE795G01014 HDFC STANDARD LIFE INSURA 10.000 680.40 6804.00 INE545A01024 HEG LTD. 1175.000 410.50 482337.50 INE019C01026 HIMADRI SPECIALITY CHEMIC 1500.000 493.45 740175.00 INE090A01021 ICICI BANK LTD. 1102.000 1249.10 1376508.20 INE092T01019 IDFC FIRST BANK LIMITED 1400.000 64.62 90468.00 INE009A01021 INFOSYS LTD. 502.000 1824.75 916024.50 INE154A01025 ITC LTD. 650.000 467.35 303777.50 INE758E01017 JIO FINANCIAL SERVICES LI 345.000 319.35 110175.75 INE019A01038 JSW STEEL LTD. 200.000 947.30 189460.00 INE498L01015 L&T FINANCE HOLDINGS LTD. 1500.000 139.71 209565.00 INE938A01021 LCC INFOTECH LTD 20000.000 11.03 220600.00 INE101A01026 MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA LTD. 250.000 2948.95 737237.50 INE287C01037 MIC ELECTRONICS LTD. 1500.000 86.05 129075.00 INE831A01028 MIRC ELECTRONICS LTD. 500.000 19.78 9890.00 INE997Y01027 MITTAL LIFE STYLE LTD 5500.000 2.00 11000.00 INE0FS801015 MOTHERSON SUMI WIRING IND 980.000 61.47 60240.60 INE870H01013 NETWORK18 MEDIA & INVESTMENTS 100.000 84.17 8417.00 INE489H01020 NITIN FIRE PROTECTION INDUSTRI 2000.000 0.00 0.00 INE305C01029 PANAMA PETROCHEM LTD. 1800.000 310.40 558720.00 INE602A01031 PHILLIPS CARBON BLACK LTD 452.000 390.00 176280.00 INE603A01013 PRAKASH INDUSTRIES LTD. 3000.000 167.11 501330.00 INE050001010 PRAKASH PIPES LIMITED 50.000 490.55 24527.50 INE696K01024 PRAKASHSTL 1000.000 8.13 8130.00 INE160A01022 PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK 4000.000 100.86 403440.00 INE855B01025 RAIN INDUSTRIES LIMITED 1700.000 149.20 253640.00 INE028D01025 RAINBOW PAPERS LTD. 3108.000 0.00 0.00 INE131B01039 RELAXO FOOTWEARS LTD. 200.000 659.35 131870.00 INE330H01018 RELIANCE COMMUNICATIONS LTD. 500.000 1.88 940.00 INE002A01018 RELIANCE INDUSTRIES LTD. 690.000 1241.65 856738.50 INE413B01023 RUCHI INFRASTRUCTURE LTD. 1050.000 11.90 12495.00 INE775A01035 SAMVARDHANA MOTHERSON INT 1050.000 165.36 173628.00 INE890C01046 SANWARIA CONSUMER LIMITED 31800.000 0.48 15264.00 INE023M01027 SETUBANDHAN INFRASTRUCTUR 2000.000 0.85 1700.00 INE268L01046 SHEKHAWATI INDUSTRIES LTD 150.000 7.34 1101.00 INE510K01019 SHILPI CABLE TECHNOLOGIES LTD. 1800.000 0.00 0.00 INE386D01027 SHIVALIK BIMETAL CONTROLS LTD. 900.000 581.75 523575.00 INE788J01021 SHIVALIK RASAYAN LTD. 40.000 542.55 21702.00 INE501W01021 SINTEX PLASTICS TECHNOLOG 9500.000 1.06 10070.00 INE683A01023 SOUTH INDIAN BANK LTD. 1000.000 22.93 22930.00 INE062A01020 STATE BANK OF INDIA 300.000 803.00 240900.00 INE717E01013 TALBROS ENGINEERING LIMITED 284.000 600.75 170613.00 INE155A01022 TATA MOTORS LTD. 1200.000 783.20 939840.00 INE245A01021 TATA POWER CO.LTD. 200.000 408.10 81620.00 INE064C01022 TRIDENT LTD. 3000.000 31.87 95610.00 Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 4 of 6 Digitally signed by SHILPI SHILPI SINGH SINGH Date:
2024.12.10 16:23:48 +0530 IN9550C01010 URJA GLOBAL LIMITED 1207.000 0.00 0.00 INE550C01020 URJA GLOBAL LTD. 2600.000 17.54 45604.00 INE054A01027 V.I.P.INDUSTRIES LTD. 180.000 460.10 82818.00 INE669E01016 VODAFONE IDEA LTD 1000.000 7.10 7100.00 INE528G01035 YES BANK LTD. 13150.000 19.56 257214.00 * Client Totals Total Value (in Rs.) 16696929.05
8. As per RW2, no nomination has been registered in their records in respect of the above said DP account bearing DP ID no. IN303948-10019613 for each of the share brought by the account holder, i.e the deceased, Late Sh. Rajnish Chopra. He also clarified that no other person has claimed these shares, as per their record.
9. During Final arguments, the Ld. Counsel for petitioners prayed that the securities in Ex RW-2/A be issued in favor of petitioners as no objection has been raised by anyone despite service of notice and the petitioners are the class I heir entitled to receive it. I have heard the submissions made by Ld. Counsel for the petitioners, perused the record and gone through the relevant provisions of law.
10. In the present case, the deceased died intestate with respect to the securities, which are mentioned in the petition as well as in the testimony of RW-2. The said security is the DEMAT shareholding of the deceased bearing DP identification number IN303948- 10019613 with Smart Equity Brokers Pvt Ltd. Since, no objection has been raised in this case for grant of succession certificate in favor of the petitioners and the Court is supposed to take a prima facie view of the person having best title, there is no impediment in granting the certificate in favor of the petitioners. The said observation was also made by the Hon'ble Apex Court in Madhvi Amma Bhawani Amma & Ors. v. Kunjikutty Pillai Meenakshi, AIR 2000 SC 2301:
" The enquiry in proceedings for grant of succession certificate is to be summary, and the Court, without determining questions of law or fact, which seem to it to be too intricate and difficult for determination, should grant the certificate to the person who appears to have prima facie the best title thereto. In such cases the Court has not to determine definitely and finally as to who has the best right to the estate. All that it is required to do is to hold a summary enquiry into the right to the certificate, with a view, on the one hand, to facilitate the collection of debts due to the deceased and prevent their being time- barred, owing (for instance) to dispute between the heirs inter se as to their preferential right to succession, and, on the other hand, to afford Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 5 of 6 Digitally signed by SHILPI SHILPI SINGH SINGH Date:
2024.12.10 16:23:56 +0530 protection to the debtors by appointing a representative of the deceased and authorising him to give a valid discharge for the debt. The grant of a certificate to a person does not give him an absolute right to the debt nor does it bar a regular suit for adjustment of the claims of the heirs inter se".
11. Thus, in view of the law laid down in the above judgment and in light of oral and documentary evidence on record, prima facie it can be said that the deceased was the resident of 193A, Second Floor, Gautam Nagar, New Delhi-110049 who expired on 09.05.2021 and left behind two Class-1 legal heirs i.e. petitioner no.1 and petitioner no.2 and since no objection is received from anyone and also because the claim of PW-1 and PW-2 stands un-controverted, there is no reason to disbelieve their unrebutted testimony recorded under oath. Prima facie, from the evidence placed on record, this Court holds that both petitioners are entitled to get 1/2 share each for the total value of securities as enumerated in Ex RW-2/A (colly) i.e. DEMAT Account of DP ID no. IN303948- 10019613 with Smart Equity Brokers Pvt Ltd, for a total sum of Rs. 1,66,96,929.05 (Rupees One Crore Sixty Six Lakh Ninety Six Thousand Nine Hundred Twenty Nine only). Succession certificate be issued in favour of both the petitioners upon filing of requisite court fees and indemnity bond, with one surety of like amount.
12. It is made clear that this succession certificate shall be considered only as an entitlement of petitioners to receive the amount as stated above, (with up-to-date interest, if any) and R2/Smart Equity Brokers Pvt. Ltd. may seek compliance of formalities, if any, by petitioners for securing release of the amount, as per rules.
13. File be consigned to record room after due compliance.
Announced in the open Court (SHILPI SINGH)
on 10.12.2024 ACJ-CCJ-ARC/South,
Saket Court/Delhi
Succ. Court 101 of 2024 ABHHEY CHOPRA AND ANR Vs. STATE AND ANR Pages 6 of 6
Digitally
signed by
SHILPI
SHILPI SINGH
SINGH Date:
2024.12.10
16:24:06
+0530