Hindu Male and Female Succession

Order of heirs and shares when a Hindu male or female dies intestate: sections 8 to 13 and 15 to 17

In one minute

The Act has two separate schemes. When a Hindu male dies intestate, his property goes to four groups in order: class I heirs, class II heirs, agnates and cognates (sections 8 to 13). When a Hindu female dies intestate, it goes to five groups in order, and the source of the property can change who takes it (sections 15 and 16).

Class I heirs take together and shut out everyone else. Section 10 gives the shares. Section 17 gives special rules for communities that followed marumakkattayam or aliyasantana law.

Exam focus

Frequency: Frequently asked
Usually asked as: Long answer (10 to 15 marks)

Legal provision

Section 8: property of a male Hindu dying intestate goes firstly to class I heirs, secondly to class II heirs, thirdly to agnates, lastly to cognates.
Section 9: class I heirs take simultaneously and exclude all others. Class II entries are preferred in order.
Section 10: four rules on shares among class I heirs.
Section 11: heirs in one class II entry share equally.
Section 12: three rules of preference among agnates and cognates.
Section 13: how degrees are counted.
Section 15: order of heirs of a female Hindu, with two exceptions by source of property.
Section 16: order and manner of distribution among her heirs.
Section 17: changes for marumakkattayam and aliyasantana law.

Meaning and definition

An agnate is a person related to another wholly through males, by blood or adoption. A cognate is related by blood or adoption but not wholly through males (section 3(1)(a) and (c)). Class I and class II heirs are listed in the Schedule. The Schedule is explained in the note on classes of heirs.

Order of heirs of a Hindu maleHow to read this: the top box is the deceased male. The boxes below are the groups in order, first to last.

Hindu male dies intestate (section 8)
- Class I heirsTake together, shut out all others (section 9).
- Class II heirsOnly if no class I heir. Earlier entry beats later entry.
- AgnatesOnly if no class II heir.
- CognatesOnly if there is no agnate.

Detailed explanation

Step 1: the male scheme (sections 8 and 9)

Section 8 sets four stages. Class I heirs come first. If there is none, class II heirs take. If there is no heir in either class, agnates take. If there is no agnate, cognates take. Under section 9, class I heirs take simultaneously and to the exclusion of all other heirs. Among class II, an heir in an earlier entry is preferred to one in a later entry.

Step 2: shares of class I heirs (section 10)

Rule 1: the widow, or all widows together, take one share.
Rule 2: the surviving sons, daughters and the mother each take one share.
Rule 3: the heirs in the branch of each pre-deceased son or daughter take one share between them.
Rule 4: the branch share of a pre-deceased son is divided so that his widow (or widows together) and his surviving sons and daughters get equal portions. The branch of his pre-deceased sons gets the same portion. In the branch of a pre-deceased daughter, her surviving sons and daughters get equal portions.

Example. A man dies leaving a widow, a mother, one son and one daughter. There are four heirs, so each takes one-fourth. If a second son had died earlier leaving a widow and two children, that branch takes one more share. There are then five shares of one-fifth each. The branch's one-fifth is divided into three equal parts of one-fifteenth.

Step 3: class II, agnates and cognates (sections 11 to 13)

Heirs in one class II entry share equally (section 11). Among agnates or cognates, three rules of preference apply (section 12).

Of two heirs, the one with fewer or no degrees of ascent is preferred.
If the degrees of ascent are the same or none, the one with fewer or no degrees of descent is preferred.
If neither is preferred under these rules, they take simultaneously.

Degrees are reckoned from the intestate to the heir, counted inclusive of the intestate. Each generation is one degree, up or down (section 13).

Step 4: the female scheme (section 15)

The property of a female Hindu who dies intestate devolves in five stages.

Firstly, to the sons and daughters (including the children of any pre-deceased son or daughter) and the husband.
Secondly, to the heirs of the husband.
Thirdly, to the mother and father.
Fourthly, to the heirs of the father.
Lastly, to the heirs of the mother.

Section 15(2) makes two exceptions that depend on the source of the property. If there is no child (or child of a pre-deceased child), property she inherited from her father or mother goes to the heirs of the father. Property she inherited from her husband or father-in-law goes to the heirs of the husband.

Kerala has added a third exception by Act 17 of 2016. Property inherited from a pre-deceased son goes to the heirs of that son.

Step 5: order and distribution among her heirs (section 16)

Rule 1: heirs in one entry of section 15(1) are preferred to those in a later entry, and those in the same entry take simultaneously.
Rule 2: if a son or daughter died earlier leaving children alive at her death, those children take between them the share the parent would have taken.
Rule 3: this rule is for heirs in clauses (b), (d) and (e) of section 15(1) and in section 15(2). The property goes as if it had been the father's, mother's or husband's. That person is taken to have died intestate immediately after her.

Step 6: marumakkattayam and aliyasantana law (section 17)

For persons who would have been governed by these laws, sections 8, 10, 15 and 23 apply with changes. In section 8, the last two stages are replaced by one: his relatives, whether agnates or cognates. Section 15(1) is replaced by a different order, and section 15(2)(a) is omitted.

Exceptions and special rules

Source of property: a woman's property inherited from her parents or from her husband's side can return to that side if she leaves no child (section 15(2)).
Kerala: property inherited from a pre-deceased son goes to that son's heirs (Act 17 of 2016).
Two or more widows: all widows together take one share (section 10 Rule 1).
Section 17: a different order for marumakkattayam and aliyasantana law.

Don't confuse: male scheme and female scheme

Point	Hindu male (sections 8 to 13)	Hindu female (sections 15 and 16)
Groups	Class I, class II, agnates, cognates	Children and husband, husband's heirs, parents, father's heirs, mother's heirs
Husband or wife	The widow is a class I heir	The husband is in the first group with the children
Source of property	Does not change the order	Can change the order (section 15(2))

Inside the concept. A Hindu man in Nellore dies leaving a widow, a son and a daughter. All three are class I heirs and take one share each.

Just outside it. A Hindu woman in Kurnool dies leaving a husband and a son. The husband and the son are both in the first group and take together under section 16 Rule 1.

Common mistakes

Saying that a widow is not an heir. She is a class I heir.
Saying that the mother is a class II heir. She is a class I heir.
Applying the male order to a female. Sections 15 and 16 have their own order.
Forgetting that the source of a woman's property can send it back to her father's or husband's heirs.
Counting degrees without the intestate. Section 13(2) counts inclusive of the intestate.

Apply it

Problem

A Hindu woman in Guntur dies intestate. She had no children. Her husband died earlier. Her only property is a house she inherited from her father. Her husband's brother and her father's brother both claim it.

Issue

Who inherits property a woman inherited from her father when she leaves no child?

Rule

Under section 15(2)(a), property inherited from her father goes, in the absence of a son or daughter, to the heirs of the father. It does not go to the heirs of the husband.

Application

The house came from her father. She left no son, daughter or child of a pre-deceased child. The claim of the husband's brother therefore fails.

Conclusion

The heirs of her father inherit the house.

Leading case laws

Commissioner of Wealth Tax, Kanpur v. Chander Sen
Facts. Rangi Lal died intestate in 1965. His only son, Chander Sen, inherited Rs.1,85,043 from the firm account. The Revenue taxed it as joint family property.

Principle. Under section 8, the son takes his father's property in his individual capacity. His sons get no right by birth in it.

Why it matters. It is the leading case on the effect of section 8 on a son who inherits.
Gurupad Khandappa Magdum v. Hirabai Khandappa Magdum
Facts. Khandappa died in 1960, leaving a widow, two sons and three daughters. The widow sued for 7/24th of the joint family property.

Principle. The widow gets 7/24th. A notional partition is assumed immediately before the death. She takes the share she would have got on that partition and her share in the deceased's interest.

Why it matters. It shows how shares are worked out where a male coparcener dies leaving female class I heirs.

How to write this answer in the exam

5-mark answer

Four stages for a male: section 8.
Class I shares: section 10.
Five stages for a female: section 15.
Section 16 and the source rule.

10-mark answer

Two schemes of the Act.
Male: sections 8 and 9.
Shares under section 10, with an example.
Class II, agnates and cognates: sections 11 to 13.
Female: sections 15 and 16.
Section 17 and the cases.

Key points to remember

Male: class I, class II, agnates, cognates (section 8).
Class I heirs take together and exclude all others (section 9).
Section 10: widow one share; each son, daughter and the mother one share; branches of pre-deceased children one share each.
Female: five stages (section 15). The source of property can send it back to the father's or husband's heirs (section 15(2)).
Degrees are counted inclusive of the intestate (section 13).

Quick self-test

1. Who comes first in the male scheme?

Class I heirs (section 8).

2. Where does property a woman inherited from her husband go if she has no child?

To the heirs of the husband (section 15(2)(b)).

3. How are degrees counted?

Inclusive of the intestate, one degree for each generation (section 13).