You need to set aside the family settlement made by your father in favour of your brothers on the ground that it was signed by your father under the influence of alcohol. For that, the burden is on you to prove your late father's mental condition supported by acceptable medical evidence. Those who witnessed the settlement deed can be questioned in court whether your late father was in a proper state of mind or not. Please engage a competent advocate and file a suit at the appropriate court.
Brothers cheated on sisters based on property
There are four children in my family: two men and two ladies. My father is illiterate and an alcoholic He has 16 acres of his own land. My mother is also illiterate. It was 2017; both of my brothers cheated my father & mother and made them sign the property agreement that day. My father was drunk, and my mom didn't know how to read or write. They dint even inform us about anything about that. After signing the property settlement, they came and told us. Years passed; my mother also passed away in 2022. When we started talking about the property, both the brothers told us that we would write and give the property to you; don't worry, trust us, we will not cheat. We also believed them. Both me and my sister had lot of attachment to our brother. We did not talk about the property issue for a few years. My father passed away in 2024; he could not do anything for us because he signed the property settlement. Now they are not giving us any land; they are refusing to give us any land out of 16 acres of land. My sister and I are asking for only 2 acres of land in the front(main road). They are refusing to give even 2 acres of land; my father has 16 acres of land. He also have 15cent house which is near the court, which is worth a lot. They also split that and took that house. Is there any chance to cancel the settlement? What can we do to get the land? My sister is handicapped
Asked 19 hours ago in Property Law
Religion: Hindu
13 Answers
Is there any chances to cancel the settlement? And get some land
Asked 19 hours ago
We do have all the medical certificates and an illiterate certificate. My sister and I were the ones to take care of my father and the ones to take care of his medical bills. We do have all the bills that we spent on our father The younger brother did not spend anything on my father, and he did not take care of our father
Asked 16 hours ago
1. If it were to be the Ancestral land and if your brothers have usurped that land, then both the sisters could file in the jurisdictional Court for your individual shares.
2. Even if it were to be the self acquired property of your father, file a case in the Court that your brothers coerced your father to sign the document in their favour when your father was drunk and intoxicated.
3. Send a legal notice to your brothers staking your claim for share in the 16 acres land and 15 cents' house. In case there's no positive response from your brothers', file a suit in the jurisdictional and competent Court for cancellation of settlement deed executed by your deceased father in favour of your brothers.
You have to file suit to set aside settlement dedd
2) take the plea that fraudulent settlement was discovered now and suit filed within period of 3 years
3) take the plea that father is illiterate and did not understand content of settlement deed
4) seek stay order restraining sale of property by siblings
Act as mentioned herein above
Mention the facts mentioned by you that you were the one taking care of father and brother refused to pay any medical bills of father
Based on the facts provided, there appear to be valid legal grounds to challenge the property settlement deed executed in 2017. It is alleged that the deed was obtained by the two brothers through fraud and undue influence, as both parents were illiterate, the father was under the influence of alcohol at the time of execution, and neither parent fully understood the nature or effect of the document. As you both were not informed about the transaction until after its execution and were subsequently assured by the brothers that they would receive their share of the property, causing them to refrain from initiating legal proceedings earlier.
Following the death of the mother in 2022 and the father in 2024, the brothers have refused to allot any portion of the 16 acres of land or the valuable residential property, despite you and your sister requesting only a small share. Additionally, your sister is person with a disability, which is a relevant factor that may be brought to the Court's attention.
In these circumstances, the aggrieved sister may consider filing a civil suit seeking cancellation or declaration that the settlement deed is void or voidable on the grounds of fraud, misrepresentation, undue influence, and lack of free and informed consent. Consequential reliefs such as partition, separate possession of their lawful share, and a permanent injunction restraining the brothers from alienating or creating third-party rights over the property may also be sought.
As property disputes are subject to limitation periods, it is advisable to initiate legal proceedings without further delay and obtain certified copies of the settlement deed, revenue records, and all relevant supporting documents before filing the suit.
If you have acceptable, proper evidence on hand to prove your case, go ahead with the legal action I suggested in my earlier opinion.
As your brothers are refusing to give you even a small portion of the 16 acres and the court-adjacent house, you and your sister must stop waiting and take legal action immediately.
However you may note that the settlement deed was executed in the year 2017 and your father passed away in the year 2024, the legal battle may be very tough hence you may have to fight it strongly.
You and your sister can file a civil suit to declare the 2017 settlement deed null and void based on the grounds that the deed is invalid because it was obtained through fraud, coercion, or misrepresentation. Your father was heavily intoxicated, your mother was illiterate, and your brothers intentionally kept the daughters in the dark, and that your brothers committed ongoing fraud by repeatedly promising you your share after 2022 to keep you from going to court. You will need to argue that the cause of action truly arose when they officially refused to give you the property, hence you are within the time limit of three years from the date of cause of action to maintain the suit.
You can also argue that under the Hindu Succession Act (Amendment) 2005, daughters have equal coparcenary (birth) rights in ancestral property. If any portion of that 16-acre land or the 15-cent house was ancestral property (passed down through generations), your father did not have the legal right to give 100% of it to his sons anyway. He could only settle his own personal share.
You file a suit in the Civil Court to cancel the 2017 settlement deed and simultaneously ask for a Partition Suit to divide the 16 acres and the house equally among all four children. You can also pray to the court for a temporary injunction (stay order) to stop your brothers from selling, leasing, or transferring any part of the 16 acres or the house while the court case is going on. If they sell it to a third party right now, getting it back becomes twice as hard.
Since your parents are no longer here to testify that they were tricked, the court will look heavily at circumstantial evidence. Gather any proof that your father was a chronic alcoholic (medical records, de-addiction center receipts), proof of your mother’s illiteracy (thumbprints instead of signatures on old documents), and any text messages, WhatsApp chats, or audio recordings where your brothers promised to give you your share.
Do not settle for asking them for just the 2 acres on the main road anymore. They have shown they will not act out of brotherly love. Legally, you and your sister may be entitled to a full one-quarter share each of the entire 16 acres and the house.
There are chances to cancel the settlement deed and secure your share of the land, but it requires immediate legal action. You and your sister are fighting for what is rightfully yours, and the law provides specific protections for situations where vulnerable parents are exploited.
Since your brothers are completely refusing to give you any portion of the 16 acres or the valuable 15-cent court-adjacent house, you must stop attempting to negotiate with them and move the battle to a Civil Court.
You and your sister have inadvertently built a powerful shield against your brothers. In Indian property litigation, courts do not just look at a piece of signed stamp paper; they look closely at equity, conduct, and vulnerability. The substantial evidences in your possession significantly increases your chances of winning in court.
Do not let your brothers see or find these documents. Make multiple photocopies and scan them digitally.
Arrange every single hospital bill, pharmacy receipt, and treatment cost chronologically. Create a simple summary sheet showing the total amount you and your sister paid out of pocket. Ensure your names or bank accounts match the payments where possible.
Keep the official illiteracy certificate safely. This directly supports the claim that your mother could not have given "informed consent" to a complex legal land settlement.
Your brothers took the 16 acres and the prime 15-cent house near the court because they assumed you and your sister would remain silent forever. You have the upper hand visually and contextually with this documentation. With a handicapped sister and a clear paper trail of caregiving, the court will look upon your case with a high level of scrutiny toward the brothers.
Dear Sir/Madam,
The settlement deed can be cancelled only by proving fraud, undue influence, or that your father was too intoxicated or mentally incapable of understanding the document. Illiteracy, medical records and witnesses may support the case, but caregiving expenses do not create ownership rights.
If the land was your father’s self-acquired property and the settlement was valid, the daughters cannot automatically demand a share. Further, a cancellation claim generally has a three-year limitation from the date of knowledge, so your admitted knowledge since 2017 is a serious difficulty.
Immediately obtain the certified settlement deed, encumbrance certificate and registration records, and consult a local civil lawyer to assess a suit for declaration/cancellation with an injunction against any further sale.
Advocate Saurabh Agrawal
Yes, based on the facts stated by you, there is a legal possibility of challenging the settlement deed, but its success will depend on the evidence you are able to produce.
If your father executed the settlement deed while he was intoxicated, illiterate, and did not understand the nature and consequences of the document, and your brothers procured his signatures by fraud, undue influence, or misrepresentation, the settlement deed can be challenged before the competent civil court. The same applies if your illiterate mother was made to sign without the contents being explained to her.
The facts that may strengthen your case include:
- Your father was allegedly an alcoholic and intoxicated at the time of execution.
- Both your parents were illiterate and unable to understand the document.
- The settlement deed was executed without informing either of the daughters.
- Your brothers allegedly assured you for several years that they would give you your share, thereby inducing you not to take immediate legal action.
- Your sister is a person with disability.
- You and your sister were the primary caregivers of your parents and bore their medical expenses, for which you have documentary proof.
However, merely proving that your parents were illiterate or that your father consumed alcohol will not, by itself, invalidate the settlement deed. The court will require evidence showing that they did not execute the document voluntarily or that it was obtained through fraud, coercion, undue influence, or without understanding its contents. The burden of proving these allegations lies on the persons challenging the deed.
Another important aspect is limitation. Since the settlement deed was executed in 2017, the court will examine why it was not challenged earlier. You will have to explain that your brothers repeatedly assured you that they would honour your parents' wishes and give you your share, and that you discovered their refusal only after your father's death. Whether this explanation is sufficient will depend upon the evidence.
If the settlement deed is ultimately set aside, the property would ordinarily devolve in accordance with law, and as daughters you would also be entitled to your lawful share in your father's estate. If the settlement deed is upheld as valid, your claim against the settled property would become difficult.
Therefore, if you genuinely believe that the settlement deed was procured by fraud or undue influence, you should immediately consult a local property lawyer and institute a civil suit seeking cancellation/declaration that the settlement deed is void or voidable, along with consequential relief regarding the property. Delay should be avoided, as limitation and third-party rights can complicate the matter further.
You need to challenge the said settlement and seek partition of your property
