Bombay High Court
Maria Jose Bindya Teles And Anr vs Antonio Francisco Cardoso Alias Antony ... on 29 September, 2025
2025:BHC-GOA:1987
2025:BHC-GOA:1987
50 WP 376-2025
Jose
IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY AT GOA
WRIT PETITION NO.376 OF 2025
MARIA JOSE BINDYA
TELES AND ANR. ... Petitioners.
Versus
ANTONIO FRANCISCO
CARDOSO ALIAS ANTONY
FRANCIS CARDOSO ... Respondent.
Ms. Asmita Tirodkar, Advocate for the Petitioners.
Mr. R.G. Ramani, Senior Advocate with Mr. Pranav Kakodkar
and Mr. Vinayak Nevrekar, Advocates for the Respondent.
CORAM: VALMIKI MENEZES, J.
DATED: 29th September, 2025
ORAL ORDER:
1. Registry to waive office objections and register the matter.
2. The Petitioners have challenged order dated 04.06.2025 passed
by the District Court-2, Mapusa in Miscellaneous Civil Appeal No.
123/2024. By the impugned order, the District Court has reversed the
order dated 13.09.2024 passed by the Civil Judge Junior Division, 'F'
Court at Panaji in Inventory Proceedings No.60/2024, which has
upheld the objections at Exhibit C-13 filed by the Interested Parties
No. 2 and 3 and who are the Petitioners herein. The objections, which
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have been sustained by the order of the Inventory court dated
13.09.2024, are that, even though the Inventory Proceeding has been
filed under Clause (b) of Sub-Section 1 of Section 373, (for a
declaration that the parties to the inventory are heirs or
representatives of the deceased Estate Leaver) the Head of the Family
is obliged, under Section 376 of the Goa Succession, Special Notaries
and Inventory Proceeding Act, 2012 ("the said Act"), to file a list of
assets and all other declarations required to be complied with under
the said provision.
3. These proceedings arise under the following circumstances:
a) An application dated 01.03.2023 was filed by the
Respondent No.1 herein under Section 373(1)(b) of the said
Act stating that the parents of the Applicant i.e. Adv. Jose
Juliao Francisco Peres Cardoso alias Jose Peres Cardoso and
Bernadette Maria Angelica Ana Rita Mesquita alias
Bernadette M.A.A. R. Mesquita alias Bernadette Mesquita
Peres Cardoso alias Bernadette Peres Cardoso alias
Bernadette Peres Cardoz, who were deceased, had left , as
their heirs and successors, two children, a son( the original
Applicant/ Respondent No.1 herein) and a daughter late
Lucilia Milagres Lourdes Peres Cardoso. The application
also discloses that besides the only two successors to the
Estate Leavers, the spouses of the two heirs, namely, Maria
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Veronica Bernardina Pimenta alias Veronica Pimenta alias
Veronica Cardoso (Respondent No.2 and spouse of
Respondent No.1), and Fausto Sebastiao Basilio Teles, who
is the deceased husband of late Lucilia, daughter of the
Estate Leavers, were also sought to be impleaded as parties
to the application, as they had moiety rights in the estate
through their spouses who were direct descendants of the
Estate Leavers.
b) The application further states that Lucilia and Fausto had
passed away. Their children i.e. grandchildren of the Estate
Leavers i.e. Oswald Roy Caetano Teles and Maria Jose
Bindiya Teles (Petitioners herein), were also heirs to the
estate. Based on these averments, a Judgment and Order was
sought in the inventory proceedings to declare that the
Estate Leavers, late Jose and Bernadette had left as their only
Correction
heirs, the Applicant, his wife Maria, and the two children of
carried out as Maria Jose
per order dated late Lucilia, Oswald Roy Caetano Teles and Maria Veronica
07.10.2025 Bindya Teles
sd/- Bernardina Pimenta (Petitioners) as surviving heirs.
There is no partition of the estate belonging to the Estate
Leavers sought in this Inventory Proceedings as
contemplated under Clause (a) of Sub-Section 1 of Section
373. Inventory Proceedings only seeks a decree of heirship
and does not involve partition of assets belonging to the
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estate.
c) The Applicant (Respondent No.1 herein) was appointed as
the Head of Family and called upon to file declaration under
Section 376 of the Act. In his declaration, which is dated
19.04.2024, the Head of Family, the Applicant/Respondent
No.1 herein had filed a declaration stating the dates on which
the parents of the Applicant and his sister Lucilia, expired
and has declared the names of the heirs to the estate. The
following were declared as heirs of the Estate Leavers:
i. Antonio Francisco Cardoso alias Antony Francis Cardoso
alias Antonio Peres Cardoso alias Anton Peres Cardoso
alias Antonio Cardoso.
ii. Meria Veronica Bernardina Pimenta alias Veronica
Pimenta alias Veronica Cardoso.
iii. Oswaldo Roy Caetano Teles
iv. Maria Jose Bindya Teles.
d) This declaration, which purports to be under Section 376 of
the Act, was objected to by the Petitioners herein i.e.
Oswaldo Roy Caetano Teles and Maria Jose Bindya Teles,
on the sole ground that, even in inventory proceedings
seeking a decree of declaration of heirship (and not
partition), the Head of Family is required to disclose the
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assets which form part of the estate of the deceased Estate
Leavers along with all other details which are found at
Clause 7 of Sub-Section 1 of Section 376. According to the
Petitioners, the Head of Family is required to state whether
the Estate Leavers left a will or a gift deed and to produce
the original or certified copy of such document and to state
whether the assets are required to be collated, and if so, to
give the list of the names of the conferees.
4. After objections were raised, the Applicant has placed, by a
response dated 03.08.2024, a copy of a Will dated 02.04.1998
executed by the Estate Leavers, whereby the disposable quota of the
estate has been bequeathed to the Applicant, who is otherwise one of
the forced heirs and a direct descendant of the Estate Leavers along
with late Lucilia, whose children are the Petitioners herein.
5. The Trial Court has upheld the objections and directed the
Head of Family to file a fresh Statement on Oath, making all
disclosures required under Section 376, which would include the list
of assets of the inheritance and to place a declaration of the will made
by the Estate Leavers. It is this order that is set aside by the District
Court in Appeal (impugned order) holding that where an inventory
proceeding is limited to seeking a declaration of heirship, and not for
partition of the estates, Section 376 being a procedural provision, the
requirement of declaration to be filed by the Head of Family have to
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be such as to comply only with the requirements for passing a
Judgment and Decree of declaration of a person's heirship. The
Appellate Court has further held that there would be no requirement
for a declaration to be made by the Head of Family of the assets that
comprise the estate of the deceased Estate Leavers, as all that was
sought in the inventory was a Decree of declaration of heirship.
It is this interpretation sought to be given to the provision of
Section 373 r/w Section 376 of the Act that is called in question in this
petition.
6. Section 373 of the Act confers the jurisdiction of an Inventory
Court to entertain inventory proceedings which are filed for two
distinct purposes. A party may file an inventory proceeding under
Sub-Clause (a) of Clause (1) of Section 373 for a partition of the estate
of a deceased, or may restrict the inventory proceeding only for
seeking a declaration of heirship or of being a representative of the
deceased, without seeking partition of the estate or its properties.
This kind of declaration of heirship, is governed by Clause (b) of Sub-
Clause 1 of Section 373.
7. In the present case, the Petitioners do not dispute that the
Petitioners and the Respondent Nos.1 and 2 are the only heirs and
successors of the Estate Leavers i.e. Jose Juliao Francisco Peres
Cardoso alias Jose Peres Cardoso and Bernadette Maria Angelica Ana
Rita Mesquita alias Bernadette M.A.A. R. Mesquita alias Bernadette
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Mesquita Peres Cardoso alias Bernadette Peres Cardoso alias
Bernadette Peres Cardoz. The will executed by the Estate Leavers
dated 02.04.1998, bequeathing the undivided moiety/half share in the
estate, in the inheritance, to the Respondent No.1, is also not denied.
The will is placed before the Inventory Court, though its certified
copy has not been placed before the Court along with a declaration
under Clause (iii) of Sub-Section 1 of Section 376. This, perhaps, is
the only flaw in the procedure followed by the Head of the family
before the Trial Court.
8. Section 376 which forms part of Chapter XXXVI of the Act is
procedural in nature. Section 375 of this Chapter specifies how a
petition for inventory proceedings is to be commenced, and
prescribes the form in which the application is to be filed. Section 376
requires the Court to pass an order of appointment of a Head of
Family and for the person appointed to take oath to discharge the
duties under the Act. Sub-Section 1 of Section 376 requires a
declaration to be given, which is required to contain certain details set
out in Clause (i) to Clause (vii) therein.
9. In the present case, the inventory proceedings is restricted to a
declaration of heirship, and not to the partition of any asset of the
estate. The declaration under Section 376, therefore, keeping in mind
that this is a procedural provision, does not require to state the details
of every asset in the estate, the value of every asset, and production
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of the title documents of each of these assets. The declaration,
however, necessarily has to state the names of the forced heirs and
whether there is a gift deed in favour of any party, and shall declare
the names of the heirs either as forced heirs or through a will or
through a gift deed.
10. Section 52 declares the legal succession and how the right of
succession devolves on persons. The legal succession devolves on the
following persons by preference:
a) on the descendants,
b) on the surviving spouse
c) on the ascendants, subject to the provisions of sub-section
(2) of section 72.
d) on the brothers and sisters and their descendants.
e) on the collaterals not comprised in clause.
f) on the State.
This is the line of succession of forced heirs.
11. Where there are Testamentary heirs, besides forced heirs, and
a bequest has been made through a will executed by the Estate
Leavers, the succession is covered by Chapter XI, where any legatee
is also considered a heir to the estate. In a similar manner, where Gift
Deeds are executed by the estate Leaver during his lifetime, the donee
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under the gift would also be considered an heir to the estate for the
purpose of the inventory proceedings.
12. Under Section 346, it is not always necessary for a party seeking
declaration of heirship to approach an Inventory Court under Section
373 of the Act, but a party could instead also execute an instrument of
declaration of heirship before the Special Notary under Chapter
XXVI of the Act, after following the procedure set down therein.
Under Section 346, as amended in the year 2024, where a party seeks
a declaration of heirship, the documents required to be produced
before a Special Notary are specified in Sub-Section 4 thereof which
are, a death certificate of the deceased/Estate Leaver, a will or gift, if
executed by the Estate Leaver, document to prove the relationship of
the heirs to the deceased person and a certified copy of the photo
identity as proof of the interested party and all other legal heirs whose
names are specified in the application. There is no requirement for
the production of a list of assets and the title documents or any of the
other declarations that are required to be given under Section 346
such as when an inventory is sought for partition of the estate. The
position could not be any different when a declaration is required to
be made by the Head of Family in an inventory proceeding which is
restricted to seeking a Decree of declaration of heirship, and not for
partition of the assets.
13. The interpretation given by the Appellate Court to the
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procedural provisions in Section 376 is that the same have to be read
in consonance with Section 373 with Clause (b) of Sub-Section 1 of
Section 373; the Appellate court has rightly held that the declaration
is required to be restricted only to giving a declaration of the details
of the Estate Leavers, the will or gift deed that may have been
executed by them during their lifetime and the names of the heirs who
are either forced heirs or who are testamentary heirs under the will or
who are donees under a gift deed and who are also heirs to the estate.
There is, therefore, no requirement as correctly held by the Appellate
Court for a declaration of the Head of Family to detail out every asset
that the estate was comprised of and to furnish title documents as is
required under Clause (vi) and (vii) of Sub-Section 1 of Section 376.
The only declaration that is required to be given in case a declaration
of heirship is sought, is a declaration under Clauses (i) and (v) of the
aforementioned provisions. The provision of Section 376 being
procedural in nature, as rightly held by the Appellate Court,
declaration in the case of seeking a Decree of heirship shall be
restricted to Clause (i) to (iv) with no requirement of declaring the
assets of the estate of the deceased.
14. The impugned order must, therefore, be confirmed and the
view taken by the Appellate Court held to be the correct view.
Consequently, the order of the District Court dated 04.06.2025
which has quashed and set aside the order dated 13.09.2024 of the
Inventory Court, is upheld and the petition stands dismissed.
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15. Since the Head of Family has already filed a declaration dated
19.04.2024, he shall now file a declaration along with a certified copy
of the will dated 02.04.1998 executed by the Estate Leavers in
compliance with Clause (iii) of Sub-Section 1 of Section 376. There is
nothing more thereof that remains to be decided by the Inventory
Court except to pass its final Judgment and Decree, based on such
declarations and the objections that have been raised by the
Petitioners/original Interested Parties No. 2 and 3 before the
Inventory Court.
Considering that the Inventory Court has now listed the matter
on 12.11.2025, the parties are directed to appear before the Inventory
Court on 06.10.2025 after which the Head of Family shall file his
declaration with a certified copy of the Will dated 02.04.1998 by
13.10.2025. Thereafter, the Inventory Court shall proceed to pass its
Judgment and Decree based on what is on record. The matter shall be
disposed of preferably by 30.11.2025.
VALMIKI MENEZES, J.
29th September, 2025
