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TMI Blog1986 (2) TMI 333X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... violative of article 14 of the Constitution. This question is of great importance because it affects the property rights of women belonging to the Indian Christian Community in the territories of the former State of Travancore. It is not necessary for the purpose of deciding this question to refer to the facts of any particular Writ Petition. It will be sufficient to trace the history of the legislation in regard to intestate succession to the property of members of the Indian Christian Community in the territories forming part of the erstwhile State of Travancore. Prior to July 1949 the State of Travancore was a prince b state and the law in force in the territories of that state in regard to intestate succession to the property of members of the Indian Christian community was the Travancore Christian Succession Act 1092. m is Act was promulgated by His Highness the Maharaja of Travancore with a view to consolidating and amending the rules of law applicable to intestate succession among Indian Christians in Travancore. The statement of objects and reasons for enactment of this Act provided that "the usages of the various sections of the Christian community do not agree in all re ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ans of the Latin Rite and also to certain Protestant Christians living in certain specified Taluks, according to the customary usage among whom, the male and female heirs of an intestate share equally in the property of the intestate and proceeded to add ex majori cautela that so far as these Christians are concerned, nothing in secs. 24, 28 and 29 shall be deemed to affect the said custom obtaining among them. This was the law which governed intestate succession to the property of members of the Indian Christian community in the territories of the former State of Travancore. In or about July 1949 the former State of Travancore merged with the former State of Cochin to form Part-B State of Travancore - Cochin. m ere were also other Part-B States formed out of erstwhile princely States and they were Hyderabad, Jammu & Kashmir, Madhya Bharat, Mysore, Pepsu, Rajasthan and Saurashtra. With a view to bringing about uniformity of legislation in the whole of India including Part-B States, Parliament enacted Part-B States (Laws) Act, 1951 providing for extension to Part-B States of certain Parliamentary Statutes prevailing in rest of India. Two sections of this Act are material, namely, s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Court taking one view while a Division Bench of the Madras High Court as also the former Travancore Cochin High Court taking other view. We shall proceed to consider which view is correct . The Indian Succession Act, 1925 was enacted by Parliament with a view to consolidating the law applicable to intestate and testamentary succession. m is Act being a consolidating act replaced many enactments which were in force at that time dealing with intestate and testant succession including the Indian succession Act, 1865. Part V of the Act relates to intestate succession and it consists of a fasciculus of sections beginning with sec. 29 and going upto sec.56. The rules relating to testate succession are to be found in Part VI of the Act which comprised 23 Chapters commencing from sec. 57 and ending with sec. 191. We are concerned here only with intestate succession and hence we shall confine our attention to Part V of the Act. Sec. 29 which is the first section in Chapter I of Part V deals with the applicability of the rules contained in that Part. This section is material and hence it would be desirable to set it out in extenso : "29. Application of Part (1) This part shall not apply t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... l, 1951, such law would stand wholly repealed. The petitioners contended that the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 which was admittedly in force in Part State of Travancore Cochin immediately prior to 1st April, 1951, was a law corresponding to Chapter II of Part V of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 and this law, namely, the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 must consequently be held to have been repealed in its entirety on the extension of the provisions of Chapter II of Part V to the Indian Succession Act, 1925 to the territories of the former State of Travancore and if that be so, the continuance of the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 could not possibly be regarded as saved by sec.29 sub-sec.(2) of the Indian Succession Act, 1925. me respondents made a faint attempt to combat this argument by urging that the Travancore Christian & Succession Act, 1092 was not a law corresponding to the Indian Succession Act, 1925 since the latter Act had a much wider coverage in that it dealt not only with rules relating to intestate succession among Indian Christian but also laid down rules of intestate succession among Parsis as also rules relating to testate success ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... led but was saved by sec.29 sub-sec.(2) of the Indian Succession Act, 1925. Of course, if there were any provision in Part States (Laws) Act 1951 expressly providing that the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 shall not stand repealed despite the extension of Chapter II of Part V of the Indian Succession Act 1925 to the territories of the former State of Travancore, then undoubtedly the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 would not have stood repealed and would have been saved. But admittedly there 18 nothing in Part States (Laws) Act, 1951 expressly saving the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092. The only argument urged on behalf of the respondents was that sec.29 sub-sec. (2) of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 had the effect of saving the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 and the latter Act therefore continued to govern Indian Christians in the territories of the former State of Travancore. Now this contention of the respondent might perhaps have required some consideration if the Travancore Christian Succession Act, 1092 had not been expressly repealed and an argument had been raised that by reason of the extension of the Indian Succession Act, 1925, t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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