Vimladevi Sajjan Shroff vs Sajjankumar Basantlal… — Succession and Inheritance | Bombay HC (2025)

Vimladevi Sajjan Shroff vs Sajjankumar Basantlal… — Succession and Inheritance | Bombay HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Petition granted; Office to issue Letters of Administration with Will annexed to the petitioner throughout India, upon satisfaction that the administration bond is properly executed as per the Rules, and after the Office verifies that no cross petition is pending or caveat is filed.

Issue for consideration

Whether the petition for Letters of Administration with Will annexed is tenable at the instance of the petitioner, a legatee under the Will, no executor having been appointed. +3 more

Court's answer

The petition is tenable because no executor has been appointed under the Will and the petitioner is one of the legatees under the Will.

Ratio / Principle

The petitioner has sufficiently explained the delay in terms of Rule 382 of the Bombay High Court (Original Side) Rules, 1980.

Key takeaways

Citation was duly affixed and 14 days expired under Rule 397(1) and (4), notice was issued to the Collector under Rule 396, no one appeared to resist the claim and no pending litigation was brought to notice; hence the petition is treated as uncontested.ratio¶13
Execution of the Will is proved on the affidavits of the two attesting witnesses, Dr. Paras K. Punamiya and Ketan Jeevraj Rathod, who deposed that the deceased signed the Testament in their presence after going through its contents; according to them all additions and alterations existed at the time of execution, constituting sufficient compliance of Rule 383.ratio¶14

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Testamentary Petition 70.TP/1494/2024 (companion WILL/577/2024), Bombay High Court, decided 04.02.2025 by Shri P. A. Jagdale, OSD with Testamentary Department: Vimladevi Sajan Shroff, a beneficiary/legatee under the last Will and Testament dated 28.08.2008 of Sajjankumar Basantlal Shroff @Sajjan Basantlal Shroff @Sajjan B Shroff (who died at Mumbai on 15/07/2018), sought Letters of Administration with Will annexed. No executor was appointed under the Will; the petitioner being one of the legatees, the petition was held tenable. Delay in presentation was explained under Rule 382 of the Bombay High Court (Original Side) Rules, 1980. Execution was proved on the affidavits of the two attesting witnesses, Dr. Paras K. Punamiya and Ketan Jeevraj Rathod (Form No.102), who deposed the testator signed after going through its contents and that all additions and alterations existed at the time of execution — sufficient compliance with Rule 383. Citation was affixed and 14 days expired under Rule 397(1) and (4); the Collector was noticed under Rule 396; the legal heirs of the testatrix consented and waived citation; legatee Amita also consented; no one appeared — the petition was treated as uncontested. Schedule-I properties were found referred to in the Will, and the administration bond was executed in the prescribed format. Petition granted; Letters of Administration with Will annexed to issue throughout India upon satisfaction that the bond is properly executed and that no cross petition or caveat is pending.

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Before: Shri. P. A. Jagdale, Officer on Special Duty, With Testamentary Department Date: 04th February 2025

FOR COMPLIANCE:

TP/1494/2024 [Original] (ECHCBM022400120 23) with WILL/577/2024

P. C. : Ms. Neha Raut i/b Kiran Jain & Co. Ld. Advocate for the Petitioner

This petition is filed by petitioner, being one of the beneficiaries under the Will executed by Sajjankumar Basantlal Shroff, @Sajjan Basantlal Shroff @Sajjan B Shroff (herein after the same is referred to as “Testator”), for grant of a Letters of Administration with Will annexed. Said Testator said to have died at Mumbai on 15/07/2018 Petitioner, namely VIMLADEVI SAJJAN SHROFF, filed the copy of death certificate, identity proof of the testator, Will, petitioner's oath.

Perused petition. Heard Ld. Advocate for petitioner. Perused documents.

The petitioner has explained the delay vide Rule 382 of the Bombay High Court (Original Side) Rule, 1980(for short “Rules”). 4) No executor has been appointed under the Will. The petitioner is the one of the legatee under the Will. Hence, petition is tenable.

Petitioner stated that the deceased left behind his last Will and Testament which was duly executed at on 28.08.2008, in English language. The original Will is handed in separately for being filed and kept in a safe place in the Office of the Prothonotary and Senior Master, High Court, Bombay.

Ld. Advocate for petitioner submits that parents of deceased predeceased Testatrix and testator was survived by legal heirs, as per the provisions of Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Legal heirs of the testatrix have consented to the petition and thereby waived the service of Citation. The petitioner affirmed that there are

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no other legal heirs of the deceased.

Citation was issued, which has been duly affixed on the conspicuous part of the Hon’ble High Court and notice board of the Collector’s Office at Mumbai and 14 days have been expired vide Rule 397(1) and (4) of the Bombay High Court (O.S.) Rules, 1980(for short “BHC Rules”) and an affidavit to that effect has been filed. Notice to collector has been issued vide Rule 396 of BHC Rules. Till today, no one appeared to resist the claim of the petitioner or nothing is brought to the notice regarding pending litigation pertaining to the same properties. Hence, the petition is treated as uncontested one.

The petitioner has filed the affidavit of (1) Dr. Paras K. Punamiya and (2) Ketan Jeevraj Rathod, Attesting Witnesses to the Will, in form No.102 of Bombay High Court (Original Side) Rules, 1980. He deposed that he was present and deceased signed the Testament in presence of him and another witness, after going through its contents. Hence, enough evidence is on record to accept the execution of the Will and petitioner is succeeded to prove the execution of Will. According to attesting witnesses all additions and alteration in a Will were existed at the time of execution and before singing the Will. Hence, there is sufficient compliance of the Rule 383 of the Rules.

Properties mentioned in the schedule-I of the petition are referred in the Will.

Other legatees, namely Amita, has given consent to grant Letters of Administration to petitioner.

Petitioner has executed the administration Bond in the prescribed format. Hence, following order:

ORDER

1) Petition is granted. 2) Office to issue Letters of Administration with Will annexed to the

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petitioner, upon satisfaction that the administration Bond is properly executed, as per the Rules, throughout India. 3) Before issuance of Letters of Administration with Will, the office to verify that there is no cross Petition is pending or caveat is filed. Office to act accordingly.

04th February 2025

Officer on Special Duty,

with Testamentary Department