W.P. No.

1386 of 2021

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 05.06.2024

CORAM:

THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE G.K. ILANTHIRAIYAN

W.P. No.1386 of 2021 and

W.M.P.Nos.1556 & 1558 of 2021

V.Sakthivel .... Petitioner

vs.

1. The Revenue Divisional Officer,

CSI Institution Campus,
Chidambaram Colony,
Erode-638 001.

2. The Tahsildar,
Muthur Road,
Modakurichi-638 104.

3. V.Eswaramoorthy

4. Rajeshwari

5. Saroja

6. Prema

7. Kathirvel

8. Uma Maheshwari .... Respondents

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

Prayer : Writ Petition is filed under Article 226 of Constitution of India

to issue a writ of Certiorarified Mandamus calling for the records of the
impugned order vide Moo.Mu.5281/2020/A3 dated 31.12.2020 issued by
the first respondent and quash the same and consequently direct the 2nd
respondent to issue the certificate that was previously issued and declare
the petitioner and 3rd, 4th and 4th respondents are the legal heirs.

For Petitioner : Mr.Naveen Kumar Murthi

For Respondents 1 & 2 : Mr.S.J.Mohammed Sathik

Government Advocate

For Respondents 3 to 5 : No appearance

For Respondents 6 to 8 : Mr.D.Selvaraju

ORDER

This writ petition has been filed challenging the order passed by

the first respondent dated 31.12.2020 thereby cancelled the relationship

certificate issued by the second respondent and remitted back for fresh

enquiry.

2. The petitioner's grandfather Late.Sengota Gounder had three

children namely, Ramasamy, Varanavasi and Lakshmi. The petitioner is

the son of the said Varanavasi. The Ramasamy had married one

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

Sivakami. They had no children and adopted a child namely Kottravel

Sethupathi in the year 1999. The said Ramasamy and his wife died

leaving behind their sole legal heir i.e., Kottravel Sethupathi. Thereafter,

the said Kottravel Sethupathi also died on 06.09.2020, leaving behind no

legal heirs of the first class as per the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. The

said Kottravel Sethupathi had two biological sisters and one brother.

However, upon adoption of the said Kottravel Sethupathi by

Mr.Ramasamy, ties with his biological family have been legally severed

and therefore, by operation of law, no person from the biological family

of Kottravel Sethupathi could have any connection or claim over any of

the properties of Kottravel Sethupathi which devolved upon him in the

adoptive family. The said Ramasamy had one brother and one sister

namely Varanavasi and Lakshiammal. The said Varanavasi had two sons

and the said Lakshmiammal had two daughters who are class II legal

heirs of the deceased Ramasamy as per Hindu Succession Act, 1956.

Therefore, they had applied for legal heirship certificate before the 2nd

respondent. After due enquiry, the second respondent issued legal heir

ship certificate on 19.11.2020 in favour of the petitioner and respondents

3 to 5 herein. Aggrieved by the same, the respondents 6 to 8 preferred an

appeal before the 1st respondent. The first respondent by an order dated
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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

31.12.2020 set aside the legal heir ship certificate issued by the second

respondent and further directed the second respondent for fresh disposal

after conducting due enquiry.

3. On perusal of the impugned order dated 31.12.2020 revealed

that the first respondent recorded about the adoption of Kottravel

Sethupathi at the age of 1 1/2 years by Ramasamy and his wife Sivakami

in the year 1999 and adoption deed was registered vide document

No.1021 of 1999 and as such after the demise of adopted son his siblings

are included as legal heirs in the legal heirship certificate. Therefore, the

legal heir ship certificate issued by the second respondent was set aside.

4. The learned counsel for the petitioner rightly pointed out that in

accordance with Section 12 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance

Act, 1956, on the date on which the adoption is made, all the ties of the

child in the family of his or her birth shall be deemed to have been

severed and replaced by those created by the adoption in the adoptive

family. It is relevant to extract the provision under section 12 of the

Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 :

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

''12. An adopted child shall be deemed to be the child of his or

her adoptive father or mother for all purposes with effect from
the date of the adoption and from such date all the ties of the
child in the family of his or her birth shall be deemed to be
served and replaced by those created by the adoption in the
adoptive family:
Provided that :-
(a) the child cannot marry any person whom he or she
could not have married if he or she had continued in the family
of his or her birth;
(b) any property which vested in the adopted child before
the adoption shall continue to vest in such person subject to the
obligations, if any, attaching to the ownership of such property,
including the obligation to maintain relatives in the family of his
or her birth;
(c) the adopted child shall not divest any person of any
estate which vested in him or her before the adoption.''

Thus, it is made clear that on the date of adoption the ties of the

adoptive child in the family of his or her birth shall be deemed to be

severed and replaced by those created by the adoption in the adoptive

family.

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

5. Though, the adoptive child namely Kottravel Sethupathi as his

siblings after adoption, the birth of Kottravel Sethupathi has deemed to

be severed and replaced by those created by the adoption in the adoptive

family. Once the said Kottravel Sethupathi had become the son of the

Ramasamy and Sivakami, his birth shall be deemed to have been severed.

The learned counsel for the petitioner also relied upon the Judgement in

the case of M.G.Mamtha Vs. C.Soundarya reported in 2018 SCC online

Mad 380. The relevant portion of the said order is extracted hereunder:

''13. Perusal of the above said provision of law as well as

the decision of the Apex Court, as discussed supra would show
without any ambiguity that an adopted child, from the date of the
legal adoption, becomes the child of adoptive father or mother
for all purposes since such child severed his or her ties in the
family of his or her birth from the said day onwards.
Consequently, all the ties of the child are replaced in the
adoptive family created by adoption. Though such adopted
child, in the adoptive family, is not the child by biological
creation, however, it should be born in mind that such adopted
child is the child of the adoptive family be legal creation, which
status certainly confers on such child all such rights as a
biological child in the adoptive family. Once such right is
conferred under law, the said child is to be considered, treated,
looked into, given the status as the child of the adoptive family,

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

as the prefix ''adopted'' is bound to vanish or at least lose its

significance any more for any purpose from the day of adoption.''

Thus, it is clear that the adoptive child is construed to be a member

of the adopted family, all the ties of the child are replaced in the adoptive

family created by adoption.

6. Therefore, the order passed by the first respondent is in

contravention of Section 12 of Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act,

1956 and the order passed by the first respondent dated 31.12.2020 is

liable to be set aside. Therefore, the order passed by the first respondent

dated 31.12.2020 is quashed. Hence, this writ petition is allowed.

Consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed. No costs.

05.06.2024

Index: Yes/No
Internet: Yes/No
Speaking Order/Non-Speaking Order
gvn

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 W.P. No.1386 of 2021

G.K. ILANTHIRAIYAN, J.

gvn

To

1. The Revenue Divisional Officer,

CSI Institution Campus,
Chidambaram Colony,
Erode-638 001.

2. The Tahsildar,
Muthur Road,
Modakurichi-638 104.

W.P. No.1386 of 2021

05.06.2024

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