Joint Hindu Family, Coparcenary, Karta

 Joint Hindu Family

Joint Hindu Family consists of common male ancestor, his wife and all his lineal male descendents together with their wives, widows and unmarried daughters and also daughters of male descendants Joint Hindu Family has no separate legal entity. It is neither a juristic person nor a corporation.

A Joint Hindu Family can neither be created by the act of the members nor by an agreement between the parties A stranger cannot be made a member of Joint Hindu Family. The only exception is mat riage and adoption.

Law will presume that every Hindu family is a joint one unless the contrary is proved.

There must be at least two members to constitute a joint family and they must be Hindus.

For bringing a Joint Hindu Family in existence a common male ancestor is necessary but for its continu ance common male ancestor is not necessary.

Coparcenary

Position before 2005 Amendment: Coparcenary comprised of continuous chain of four genera- tions of male members. (including the last holder of the property). It is a narrower body within a joint family.

→ Mirakshara concept of coparcenary is based on the notion of son's birth right in the joint family property. Coparceners acquire interest in the joint family property by birth.

Mitakshara coparcenary comes to an end either by partition or by death of last surviving coparcener. 

Existence of a joint family property is essential in a coparcenary.

Initially coparcenary carried with itself doctrine of survivorship. It means that on the death of a co-parcener, his interest in the joint family property will devolve on surviving coparceners by rule of survivorship and not by succession.

This doctrine was diluted by Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and finally abolished by 2005 amendment.

Position after 2005 Amendment: Section 6(1) of Hindu Succession Act, 1956 was amended by Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005. It brought about the following changes:-

1. The daughter (married or unmarried) of a coparcener shall by birth become a coparcener in her own right in the same manner as son. 
2. She has the same right in the coparcenary property as she would have had if she had been a son.
3. She shall be subject to same liabilities in respect of the said coparcenary property as that of a son.

→ Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 also abolished the doctrine of survivorship. Now the interest of the deceased coparcener will devolve by testamentary or intestate succession and not by survivorship

→ In Arshnoor Singh v. Harpal Kaur & Ors. (2019), Supreme Court held that the rule under Mitakshara law that whenever a male ancestor inherits any property from any of his paternal ancestors upto three degrees above him, then his male legal heirs upto three degrees below him would get an equal right as coparceners in that property will apply in cases of succession which opened before Hindu Sucesion Act 1956.

Karta

The affair of the joint Hindu family has to be managed by some male member. The senior-most male member who manages the affairs of the Joint Hindu Family is called "Karta"."

He is regarded as the head of the family and possesses the supreme position in the affairs of the family Generally, a senior most coparcener of a Joint Family is the 'Karta". This presumption is very strong, th case of any conflict the senior-most member will be the Karta of the family,

However, if the senior-most member does not want to continue as Karta he can relinquish his position and with the consent of other coparceners another member of coparcenary (not necessarily senior in line) will become Karta.

As regards the question whether a female can be a Karta? Supreme Court in CIT v. Seth Govindram Sugar Mills, AIR 1966 SC. 24, held that female member cannot be a Karta because she cannot be a coparcener.

However, after 2005 Amendment, position has changed and now females can be coparcener. There- fore, now, in the absence of male member, female can be a Karta.