9.1 Admittedly, the suit was for recovery of the possession under
Section 6 of the Specific Relief Act. It is the settled law that in a suit under
Section 6 for the Specific Relief Act, the title for ownership in regard to the
property in question is not to be adjudicated. The dispute which is between
the parties whether the property in question had been partitioned before
executing the agreement to sell, in favour of the plaintiff in suit by one of
the co-sharer, same has no bearing while deciding the suit under Section 6
for Specific Relief Act. In this very suit, only the two issues are to be
decided by the learned Trial Court, firstly, whether the plaintiff of the
suit no. 14 of 2021 was in possession of the property in suit? Secondly,
whether the plaintiff of the suit has been dispossessed from the property in
4
question by force without adopting due course of law? This dispute is to be
decided between the plaintiff and the defendant of the suit.
9.2 The petitioner who have come herein having assailed the order
which was passed by the learned Trial Court rejecting the application under
Order 1 Rule 10 (2) read with Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure
pleading themselves to be the co-sharer of the property in question and have
also pleaded that the very property in question being of joint possession and
joint ownership, they were necessary parties. This plea is not tenable taking
into consideration the issues which are to be decided between the parties.
9.3 Learned counsel for the petitioner had relied the case law of
Gazara Vishnu Gosavi vs. Prakash Nanasaheb Kamble & Ors. (Supra)
and also Hardeo Rai vs. Sakuntala Devi & Ors., the benefit of both the
case law cannot be given to the petitioner, since in Gazara Vishnu Gosavi,
the suit was under Section 8 of the Specific Relief Act and in the case law
Hardeo Rai vs. Sakuntala Devi & Ors. the suit was for specific performance
for agreement to sell.
In the case discussed by the Hon'ble Apex Court reported in 2008 (7) SCC 46 (Hardeo Rai v. Sakuntala Devi and others), the co-parcenary properties were found to have lost their character on entering into a partition between the co-sharers whereas this property being the exclusive property of mother was divided among the daughters will not lose its character so as to deprive the right under Section 15 (2) of Hindu Succession Act.
10. Hardeo Rai Vs. Shakuntala Devi [supra]
discusses concept of unity of interest in a Mitakshara joint
8
family. It is held here that when intention to separate is
expressed, share of each coparcener becomes clear,
therefore joint tenancy comes to an end and the members
of the family become tenants in common. This decision is
cited probably in the context that one brother of the
respondent filed a suit for partition, which brought to an
end, as it was argued, the co-ownership. This principle
cannot be applied to the case on hand in view of the fact
that no other member of the family took objection for
evicting the petitioner tenant by the respondent alone.
In Hardeo Rai Vs. Sakuntala Devi and others, (cited
supra) it was pleaded that the property was not already partitioned
but, the evidence on record would show that the parties were in
separate possession of their properties. Under the said circumstances,
the Hon'ble Supreme Court has held that for the purpose of assigning
one's interest of the property, it was not necessary that partition by
metes and bounds amongst the coparceners must take place. When an
intention is expressed to partition the coparcenary property, the share
of each of the coparceners becomes clear and ascertainable. Once the
share of a coparcener is determined, it ceases to be a coparcenary
property. Further, it was held that where a coparcener takes definite
share in the property, he is owner of that share and as such he can
alienate the same by sale or mortgage in the same manner as he can
dispose of his separate property. In this case, it is not the case of the
defendant that already partition took place between himself and the
plaintiffs 2 to 4 and therefore, the aforesaid decision will not apply to
the facts of this case.
17. Further, in the case of Hardeo Rai Vs. Shakuntala
Devi, the Hon'ble Apex Court has also observed that when
there is coparcenary property and when the intention is
expressed to partition the property, then the share of each
of coparceners become clear and once the share of a co
parcener is determined, then it ceases to be coparcenary
Suit No.160/12/04 ...39/50
Smt. Om Wati Sharma Vs. Sh. Sanjay Sharma ... 40
property. Further, where a coparcener takes a definite
share in the said property, he becomes the owner of that
share and as such, he can alienate the said property by sale
or mortgage in the same manner as he can dispose of his
separate property.
It may be noticed that Hon'ble Supreme Court, in the case of
Hardeo Rai Vs. Sakuntala Devi & Ors. (supra), has been pleased to lay
down, that when a coparcener takes definite share in the property, he
becomes owner of that share and as such he can alienate the same by sale or
mortgage in the same manner as he can dispose of his separate property.
“5. According to the Mitakshara School of Hindu Law
all the property of a Hindu joint family is held in
collective ownership by all the coparceners in a quasi
corporate capacity. The textual authority of the
Mitakshara lays down in express terms that the joint
family property is held in trust for the joint family
members then living and thereafter to be born (see
Mitakshara, Chapter I, 127). The incidents of co
parcenership under the Mitakshara law are: first,
the lineal male descendants of a person up to the
third generation, acquire on birth ownership in the
ancestral properties of such person; secondly, that
such descendants can at any time work out their
rights by asking for partition; thirdly, that till
partition each member has got ownership
extending over the entire property, conjointly with
the rest; fourthly, that as a result of such co
ownership the possession and enjoyment of the
properties is common; fifthly, that no alienation of
the property is possible unless it be for necessity,
without the concurrence of the coparceners, and
sixthly, that the interest of a deceased member
lapses on his death to the survivors. A coparcenary
under the Mitakshara School is a creature of law
and cannot arise by act of parties except in so far
that on adoption the adopted son becomes a co
parcener with his adoptive father as regards the
ancestral properties of the latter.”
(emphasis supplied)
This exposition has been taken note of in Hardeo Rai (supra).
30. It is apt to observe that the aforesaid dispute arose from the
partition suit no.21/73 in which both the appellant and the
respondent no.1 herein were parties as legal heirs of deceased
Jamuna Prasad. Even otherwise also, it is settled law that when a
male Hindu dies leaving surviving female relative specified in
Class-1 of the Schedule, his interest in the coparcenary property
has to devolve by testamentary or intestate succession and not by
survivorship and to carry out this object, the concept of notional
partition has been employed under Explanation-1. This Court finds
support from a Larger Bench judgement of Hon'ble Apex Court in
the case of Gurupad Khandappa Magdum (supra) and Division
Bench judgements in Pavitri Devi & Anr. (supra) and Hardeo
Rai (supra).