Under Hindu succession law, when your mother passed away intestate (without a will), her three daughters automatically became equal co-owners of the flat — each holding an undivided 1/3rd share. The fact that the flat is still recorded in your mother’s name in society or municipal records does not change the legal inheritance; mutation is only for administrative purposes.
When the building goes into redevelopment, the legal character of ownership does not change. The old flat is replaced by a new flat, but it continues to belong to the same owners in the same proportion. So after redevelopment, the new flat will be jointly owned by all three daughters equally.
The society or developer is not supposed to hand over possession (keys) to only one sister merely because she is staying there now or paying maintenance. Legally, possession should be handed over jointly to all legal heirs or to a person authorised by all of them. In practice, many societies hand over keys to the person in physical occupation, but that does not give her exclusive ownership rights — she only holds it on behalf of all co-owners.
If one sister is refusing to sign documents or cooperate, the redevelopment cannot legally extinguish the other sisters’ rights. Your 1/3rd shares remain fully protected. The non-cooperating sister cannot become sole owner just by staying in the flat or paying charges.
After redevelopment, there are generally three possibilities:
• The flat is handed over jointly (all three sign possession papers)
• It is handed over to one sister as an occupant, but legally for all three
• Disputes arise and the society/developer keeps possession pending resolution
If one sister continues to block signatures or tries to take exclusive possession, the other sisters can:
• Seek mutation in all three names as legal heirs
• Issue legal notice asserting joint ownership
• File a suit for partition and separate possession (or sale and division)
• Seek injunction restraining exclusive possession or alienation
Courts consistently hold that redevelopment does not alter inheritance rights.
Regarding maintenance — the sister living there can later claim proportionate reimbursement from the others, but she cannot claim ownership based on payment alone.
In simple terms:
All three daughters will legally own the new flat equally.
Keys should ideally be given jointly.
If given to one sister, it does not cancel the others’ rights.
If cooperation fails, partition proceedings are the ultimate solution.