My grandfather owns a building in the city with two 1BHK portions. He has five sons; the first three have passed away, and the last two are alive. The youngest son has occupied both portions of the building for nine years. He let his second wife and a female friend live there and refuses to vacate. Despite multiple requests, he demands ₹2 lakhs to leave but hasn’t guaranteed he’ll vacate even if we pay. The other four families (including heirs of the deceased sons) agree to sell the property and share the proceeds equally. However, the youngest son is obstructing the sale, demanding his share and ₹2 lakhs. Partitioning the property is complicated as his portion includes the last pillar, which could make selling difficult. We approached the police for help, but they refused to file a case. To add to this, the fourth son is exploiting the situation and trying to buy out the shares of others at a low price. What are the possible and efficient steps to sell the property and divide the shares without wasting time in court? Also, why might the police be unwilling to assist in this matter?
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Police would not intervene as it is a civil dispute
You should file a suit for partition for division of Property by metes and bounds
Seek injunction restraining sale of property by other legal heirs
if property cannot be partitioned court would order sane of property
1. Send a legal notice to the last son for partition of the property by metes and bounds.
2. If there's no positive response from the last son, file a suit in the jurisdictional Court for declaration, partition and separate possession of the property by metes and bounds.
3. Police are not legally permitted to interfere in the civil case.
4. Take the help of family elders to resolve the issue and let all the legal heirs enter into a Family Settlement Deed.
All co-owners must agree on the terms of the sale. All co-owners must agree on the terms of the sale. Even if one of them do not agree on those terms, the sale of the proeperty will not be possible and one cannot sell it.
The Supreme Court ruled in a recent case that the co-owner of an undivided property cannot transfer the entire property without first demarcating their share.
According to Hindu law, a property cannot be sold without the consent of other family members, so if you want to sell your family-owned property, you will need the consent of all family members before selling it.
Therefore it is advisable that you file a suit before concerned to sell the property through court and distribute the sale consideration amount to the shareholders as per law or you can file a suit for partition.
If the property is indivisible then the court may bring the property for auction sale and distribute the sale consideration amount among the legal heirs as per personal law of succession.
If everyone is willing to settle the matter then all legal heirs can execute registered partition deed
Legal Notice: Send a legal notice to the youngest son demanding vacating the property and cooperation for the sale.
Partition Suit: File a partition suit if no agreement is reached, seeking court assistance to sell the property and divide the proceeds.
Mediator: Engage a mediator to negotiate a settlement, including the youngest son’s demand, to expedite resolution.
Police Issue: Police may view this as a civil matter, hence no FIR; focus on legal remedies.
For detailed, personalized advice, consider a phone consultancy. Hope you find the information helpful. You are free to contact me for further discussion. If you could spare two minutes of your time to write a review, it would be greatly appreciated and bring immense happiness to read it. Thank you. Shubham Goyal.
Dear Client,
In the circumstances presented, the property is joint family property, and all the legal heirs, including descendants of deceased sons, should be entitled to share equally therein. I assume the police are not helping because property disputes are neither a police matter nor criminal law. To do it systematically, formal mediation can be initiated with all the heirs, wherein they discuss the terms of getting all the heirs vacated and selling the property. If nothing works out, you can send a legal notice to the youngest son to vacate the property and cooperate with the sale. Finally, a partition suit may be moved in the court for partition, which may lead to the sale of the property and distribution of money among the heirs. Unauthorised occupants can also be evicted. Getting a professional valuation would also aid in the buyout of the youngest son if all agree. It is better to lodge these steps through a property lawyer; they make all steps legal and make the process fairly quick.
I hope this helps. Reach out if you have any further questions.
Prima facie, this is a civil dispute and police cannot interfere unless offence has been committed. Better settle the issue by paying the parties and get it in writing and register.
G.Rajaganapathy
Advocate
High Court of Madras
Your case involves a property dispute where the youngest son has unlawfully occupied the building and is obstructing its sale despite the agreement of other heirs. The police cannot intervene as this is a civil matter. To resolve the issue efficiently, begin with mediation to reach an amicable agreement, ensuring the youngest son receives his rightful share. If mediation fails, serve a legal notice demanding he vacate the property and, if necessary, file a partition suit to establish each heir’s share and facilitate the sale. Alternatively, an eviction suit can be filed against the youngest son for unauthorized occupation. Engaging a real estate consultant to manage the sale and seeking a court injunction to prevent further interference can also help. Courts generally favour majority consent in co-ownership disputes, and you can deposit the youngest son’s share in court if he continues to obstruct the process.
Thanks and Regards,
Advocate Aman Verma, Legal Corridor
Police will not do anything since this is a civil dispute
Partition suit is the only way out
It is not illegal for one of the sons to buy out the shares of others at a mutually agreed price even if that be not equal to market rate
