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39. In the commentary titled as ‘Hindu Law and Judicature’ - from the Dharma-sastra of Yajnavalkya5 by renowned authors Edward Roer, PH.D., M.D. and W.A. Montriou, in Clause 135, it is stated as under :-

“135. If a man depart this life without male issue; (i) his wife, (ii) his daughter, (iii) his parents, (iv) his brothers,
(v) the sons of his brothers, (vi) others of the same gotra, (vii) kindred more remote, (viii) a pupil, (ix) a fellow-student - these succeed to the inheritance, each class upon failure of the one preceding. This rule applies to all the caste.”

45. According to ‘Mulla’ under Mitakshara Law, the right to inherit arises from propinquity, i.e., proximity of relationship. Mitakshara divided blood relations into three classes, namely -

(a) Gotra-sapindas, i.e., Sapindas belonging to the same gotra or family as the deceased from 1st-7th degree;

(b) Samanodaka, i.e., persons belonging to the same gotra or family as the deceased from 8th -14th degree; and

(c) Bhinna gotra sapindas, i.e., Sapindas belonging to a different gotra or family from the deceased.

46. ‘Gotra Sapindas’ and ‘Samanodaka’ are persons connected to the deceased by an unbroken line of male descendants i.e., all agantes; and Bhinna gotra sapindas are persons connected to the deceased through a female i.e, cognates such as a sister’s son. ‘Bhinna gotra sapindas’ are also known as ‘Bandhus’ in Mitakshara. These classifications while now archaic and delineated as class-I, class-II, class-III and class-IV heirs under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, are of importance with respect to the property in question considering its succession opened before the commencement of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956.

47. The Gotra Sapindas of a person, according to Mitakshara are :-

(i) His six male descendants in the male line; i.e., his son, son's son's son, etc.
(ii) His six male ascendants in the male line, the wives of the first three of them, and probably also of the next three; ie, his father, father's father, father's father's father, etc, being Fl to F6 in the table and their wives, that is Ml to M6, being the mother, father's mother, father's father's mother, etc.