NEW DELHI: Supreme Court has ruled that minors can challenge any property sale or transfer done by their parents or guardians without a lawsuit, after turning 18 .
The court said adults can cancel such transfers by taking clear actions, like selling or transferring the property themselves.
"It can safely be concluded that a voidable transaction executed by the guardian of the minor can be repudiated and ignored by the minor within time on attaining majority either by instituting a suit for setting aside the voidable transaction or by repudiating the same by his unequivocal conduct," Justice Mithal, authoring the judgment, said.
The verdict came in K S Shivappa vs Smt K Neelamma case. The case involved two plots in Shamanur village, Karnataka, bought in 1971 by Rudrappa in the names of his three minor sons.
Rudrappa sold the plots without court permission. After the sons became adults, they sold the plots to K S Shivappa. Third parties who had bought the plots earlier claimed ownership, leading to disputes.
Lower courts were divided on whether the minors needed to file a suit to cancel the original sale. The Supreme Court clarified that a formal suit is not needed. Adults can repudiate the guardian’s sale by acting clearly, such as selling the property themselves.
The court added that sometimes, minors may not even know about the original sale, or the property may still be in their possession, so filing a suit is not always necessary.
The court said adults can cancel such transfers by taking clear actions, like selling or transferring the property themselves.
"It can safely be concluded that a voidable transaction executed by the guardian of the minor can be repudiated and ignored by the minor within time on attaining majority either by instituting a suit for setting aside the voidable transaction or by repudiating the same by his unequivocal conduct," Justice Mithal, authoring the judgment, said.
The verdict came in K S Shivappa vs Smt K Neelamma case. The case involved two plots in Shamanur village, Karnataka, bought in 1971 by Rudrappa in the names of his three minor sons.
Rudrappa sold the plots without court permission. After the sons became adults, they sold the plots to K S Shivappa. Third parties who had bought the plots earlier claimed ownership, leading to disputes.
Lower courts were divided on whether the minors needed to file a suit to cancel the original sale. The Supreme Court clarified that a formal suit is not needed. Adults can repudiate the guardian’s sale by acting clearly, such as selling the property themselves.
The court added that sometimes, minors may not even know about the original sale, or the property may still be in their possession, so filing a suit is not always necessary.
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