Smt. Chander Kanta Malhotra and Others vs DDA and Others

Rajiv Sahai Endlaw, J.—The writ petition impugns the letter dated 5th July, 2011 of the Respondent DDA refusing to include the names of the Petitioners in the allotment made of Plot Nos. C-1, 2, 25 to 27, Mangolpuri Industrial Area, Phase-I, Delhi in favour of the Respondents No. 4 to 9.

One Sh. Inder Raj kakkar was entitled to allotment of alternative plots from the Respondents No. 1 to 3 DDA. However before the allotment could be made, the said Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar died on 2nd April, 1982 leaving his wife as his only natural heir; he and his wife being issueless.

The wife of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar namely Smt. Savitri Kakkar also died issueless and intestate on 10th August, 1986. No allotment could be made in her life time also and Respondent DDA has made the allotment now, only in June, 2011. The Respondents No. 4 to 9 in whose favour the allotment has been made are the legal heirs of the brothers/sisters of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar.

The three Petitioners are the legal heirs of Sh. Ishwar Das Kakkar another brother of late Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar. However while the Respondents No. 4 to 9 are the legal heirs of the brothers/sisters of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar who died after the demise of both Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar and his wife Smt. Savitri Kakkar, the predecessor of the Petitioners namely Sh. Ishwar Das Kakkar died on 7th October, 1983 i.e. after the demise of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar but before the demise of Smt. Savitri Kakkar.

The Respondent DDA has not considered the Petitioners to be the legal heirs of late Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar. The Petitioners claim that they are. They contend that the rights to the aforesaid land of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar on his demise were inherited by his wife Smt. Savitri Kakkar and Smt. Savitri Kakkar having died issueless, the rights in the land aforesaid inherited by her from her husband, u/s 15(2)(b) of Hindu Succession Act, 1956 devolve upon the heirs of her husband i.e. late Sh. Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar. It is further contended that thus Rule 3 in Section 16 of the Act would apply and the heirs of late Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar would be determined by deeming Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar to have died immediately after the demise of Smt. Savitri Kakkar on 10th August, 1986. Reliance in this regard is placed on Bhagat Ram (D) by Lrs. Vs. Teja Singh (D) by Lrs., and Bajaya Vs. Gopikabai and Another,

I fail to see as to how the Petitioners would still become the heirs of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar. Even if Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar is deemed to have died immediately after the demise of his wife on 10th August, 1986, his heirs as per the schedule to the Act, in the absence of Class-I heirs and in the absence of his father amongst the Class-II heirs, would be his brothers and sisters i.e. only those brothers and sisters who were alive on 10th August, 1986.

Sh. Ishwar Das Kakkar (whose legal heirs the Petitioners are) though a brother of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar had admittedly died prior to the demise of Smt. Savitri Kakkar. He would thus not be the legal heir of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar and the Petitioners claiming through him have been rightly held by the Respondent DDA to be not the legal heirs of Sh. Inder Raj Kakkar.

The writ petition is therefore dismissed. No order as to costs.