FAMILY LAW-II

POWER OF KARTA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS

SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY:

DR. SARITA SURUCHI SINGH
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW BALLB
HPNLU, SHIMLA 1020202149

6TH SEMESTER
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION
2. WHO CAN BE A KARTA
i. Senior most male member
ii. Junior as Karta
iii. Female as a Karta
3. CHARACTERSTICS OF KARTA
4. POWERS OF KARTA
i. Family affairs management
ii. Power to represent
iii. Power to income
iv. Power of alienation
a. Legal necessity
b. Benefit of estate
c. Indispensable duties
v. Power to contract debts
vi. Power of Karta to gift property
vii. Right to compromise
5. Liabilities of a Karta
6. Responsibilities of a Karta
7. Conclusion
8. Bibliography

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would love to put a conversational expression of gratitude to Dr. Sarita, Assistant Professor
(Law), at National Law University, Shimla, for providing me an opportunity through this
project to explore various sections under the topic; Power of Karta: a critical analysis; thereby
helping me assimilate within and pick up on it. I believe this will help me comprehend better
and get an enhanced hang on suits pertaining to this area of Family Law, through this project
analyzation.

DATE:25/05/2023 SURUCHI SINGH

B.A.L.L.B (Hons)

INTRODUCTION
Hindu law has many unique alternatives that are relevant to family structures, therefore the
joint family system may be an important factor in determining how practical this mechanism
is. The joint family consists of a number of individuals, each of whom possesses completely
unique property rights. Despite the existence of individuality, the cohesive structure of the
family is highlighted by the decisions that must be made by the entire family in a variety of
legal and other problems. It becomes imperative that one UN agency be in charge of these
situations and have the authority to make decisions. Such a person is known as the Karta. The
Karta is a very unique member of the Hindu untitled Family. This singularity of the Karta is
relevant to (the different, the numerous, and the varied) powers he wields when performing
his duties as the head in various facets of the practicalities of the family. The Karta is thought
of as a person with restrained abilities, but within this narrow definition, he occupies a
position of enormous responsibility. The relationship a Karta has with various family
members is not one of trustee, partner, or principal. His unique abilities are "very wide and
nearly sovereign," making it foolish to compare them to any partnership or principal-agent
arrangement. The Karta will exchange a fiduciary agreement with the other family members,
but the relationship cannot be referred to as a district relationship. Even in terms of
answerability, he is not liable to any family members unless there has been theft or fraud
involved.

The Joint Hindu family is a patriarchal structure, and Karta serves as the family's leader. As
the oldest male family member and the family's official spokesperson, Karta makes decisions
on their behalf. Because every family needs a head person who can watch out for the welfare
of younger family members and females in a Joint Hindu Family, there is a fiduciary
relationship between the Karta and the other family members. Karta holds a special place in a
blended Hindu family. The members of the Hindu Joint Family are required to abide by the
Karta's decisions about the entire family and its property. A Karta has more authority and a
more prominent position than any other member of the Hindu Joint Family. Among the other
members of the joint family, Karta is unmatched.

WHO CAN BECOME A KARTA:

 Senior most male member

The senior-most male member has the right and the ability to become a Karta. Karta is always
a family member; no stranger or outsider can become a Karta. If the family's senior male
member is still living, he will continue to serve as Karta; if he passes away, the second senior
male member will assume control of Karta. By unanimous assent or agreement of all the
coparceners, Karta assumes his role.

A family member may appear as the joint family property with the consent of all other family
members, without necessarily being in an extremely list of seniority of age, when the Karta
relinquishes his right to manage the affairs of the family due to reasons of his health or
because he is away. An important case in this regard is Nopany Investments (Pvt) Ltd. v.
Santokh Singh1, in which the family's Karta, who was living in the United Kingdom and
unable to manage the property due to distance, appointed his younger brother as his
representative with the approval of the family as a whole even though other family members
were older than him. The court declared this to be valid because it stipulates that the younger
member is actually the one who formed the Karta beneath such circumstances.

As a result of their non-coparceners and inability to represent the overall circumstances of the
family, women are not permitted to serve as the joint family's Karta, which must only be a
male member. In Commissioner of Taxation v. Hindu deity Narang, it had been ruled that a
female member might serve as the Karta under certain conditions. However, this ruling has
since been overturned by the non-coparcener side. In Narendra Kumar v. CIT2, it was once
again ruled that if the juvenile is left as the only one to manage, if under the supervision of a
guardian. This is relevant to the issue of whether minors are a Karta.

 Junior male member

A junior can also join the family as a Karta if the coparceners approve. A junior male member
of the family may become a Karta by making the necessary arrangements with the
coparceners.

 Female member as a Karta

1
AIR 2008 SC 673
2
AIR 1976 SC 1953
 According to Dharmastra, a female can serve as a Karta in a family when the male
member is not there. Females can also serve as a Karta if there are male members present
but they are minors.

CHARACTERSTICS OF KARTA:

1. The position of Karta is special (sui generis). He holds a unique status inside the family,
and no one can be compared to him.

2. Although he had unrestricted power, he could not be regarded as a partner or agent, even if
he acted on behalf of other members.

3. He has extensive influence and oversees all family issues.

4. He owes no one anything. The only exception to this rule is that he is responsible in cases
of fraud, misappropriation, or conversion.

5. He isn't required to invest, save, or cut costs. Unless he is not accountable for the
aforementioned charges, he is free to use the resources as he pleases.

6. He is not required to distribute the family members' share of the revenue from the joint
property equally. He is not required to be neutral and is free to compare one person to
another. All he needs to do is pay everyone so they can get access to things like food,
clothing, education, housing, and other necessities of life.

POWER OF THE KARTA

 FAMILY AFFAIRS MANAGEMENT: A Karta has the ability to appear in family
proceedings and has access to the family's assets because they are the family's
supreme leader. Regarding the case of Bhaskaran v. Bhaskaran, it has been
determined that even if a Karta's authority for property alienation is constrained, his
control over managing the business of the family is quite absolute. The Karta will have
the capacity to completely own the property and receive the financial benefit. Additionally, he
has some unique privileges, such as the ability to eject himself from a particular area of the
family's property if a certain family member asks it without the Karta agreeing to the request.
Even if he exhibits characteristics of favouritism and prejudice towards specific relations with
regard to maintenance etc., his managerial abilities are considered to be inherent, and no
intervention is to be permitted. There is no way to question the Karta's discretion, which is
frequently involved in this.

 POWER TO REPRESENT: When it comes to any legal or perhaps social issues, the
Karta is regarded as the sole representative of the family structure. When the family
files a specific lawsuit in any court, the lawsuit is really submitted under the name of
the Karta. Likewise, when the family is sued, the lawsuit is specifically filed under the
name of the Karta in the court. This indicates that the Karta is unmistakably a
representation of the entire family and that the family as a whole lack a distinct
corporate identity. As a result, even if they are not individually liable under the
applicable laws, all current members of the Karta family are collectively bound once a
specific judgement against the Karta is rendered. The Karta is expected to
demonstrate the highest levels of sincerity and vigour in matters of judicial
proceedings. The Karta has the ability to dispose of property, but he has no greater
interest in a particular kind of ownership than the other family members. It is
important to understand that when the manager enters into a contract with a third
party and at that moment one of the family members still hasn't reached the age of
majority, the contract cannot be regarded as binding on the minor.

 POWER OVER INCOME: If there is any excess in the family accounts, he has
power over those accounts as well. The social control side of the Karta mandates the
Karta, the side of dominant his financial gain and expenditure. If the Karta has
expenses that the other relatives do not agree to, then these family members may
 choose to tighten a partition and the Karta must accept their portion together with the
amount they believed to have been improperly spent.

 POWER OF ALIENATION: While neither the Karta nor the other co-parceners
have the authority to alienate the family's common property, there are several unusual
circumstances in which the alienation is obligatory on all family members. The
Dharmashastra accepts that the Karta has the authority to alienate property, but only in
certain circumstances. They must be declared as follows:

a) Apatkale (necessity in legal terms)

b) Kutumbharte (estate’s benefit)
c) Dharmamarthe (obligations of non-secular nature)

 LEGAL NECESSITY

Due to the large number of occurrences that have been seen and the difficulty in defining the
phrase in concrete terms, it lacks a clear definition. However, depending on how it is
interpreted, it might be said that the legal requirement of a family is related to its wants and
that alienation is a result of that requirement.

This is another broad requirement that must be met for alienation to occur. The benefits that
the estate receives from any such defined alienation by the Karta are to be regarded as
legitimate in it. Such beneficial property alienation arrangements are encouraged, and the
Karta will have the authority to proceed at his judicious discretion.

 Dev Kishan vs Ram Kishan AIR 2002

In this instance, the plaintiff sued the defendant. Members of the Joint Hindu Family are both
the plaintiff and the defendant. Under the inducement of Defendant 1, Defendant 2 Karta sold
and mortgaged the property for the immoral and illegal purpose of arranging the marriage of
Vimla and Pushpa, two underage daughters. The defendant claimed that he took out the loan
because it was required by law.

The debt was used for an illegal purpose, the court determined. It can be considered legal
alienation because it violated the 1929 Child Marriage Restraint Act.

 Benefit of Estate
Anything done for the benefit of the joint family property is considered to be benefiting
the estate. As a manager, Karta is able to take on all tasks that promote the family.

 Indispensable duties

These phrases describe the carrying out of religious, pious, or compassionate deeds.
Examples of unavoidable obligations include marriage and grihapravesham. A Karta may
sell a piece of the property to benefit charity. In this situation, the Karta's authority is
constrained; he is only permitted to alienate a small amount of the family's property,
whether it be moveable or immovable.

 POWER TO CONTRACT DEBTS: The Karta has the authority to enter into debt
agreements on behalf of the family in accordance with their preferences, and these
debts are legally binding on every member. Even after acts of division from the joint
estate, the members are still responsible for these debts. However, it has been
determined that the Karta cannot be permitted to increase loans by using the estate of
a minor acquaintance as security, leading to the start of some transaction of an
ancestral character. The paper will now deal with the members' relative size of
culpability for the reduced debt.

 POWER OF KARTA TO GIFT PROPERTY: A Karta may have greater social

control authority, but he is not permitted to give away family property unless there is
some other type of legal requirement, such as for spiritual purposes.

 Moving Property as gift

As a gesture of affection, the father or the Karta is permitted to give ancestral joint
family property to sons, daughters, and other family members when doing so will
promote "indispensable acts of duty, and family, relief from distress, and so forth."
Such donations do have restrictions, such as the fact that they cannot include all of
the property to support one specific member because that would defeat the
purpose of the phrase "gift of affection".
  Immovable property as gifts

Due to a few constraints, the Karta will have the right to give a person for
religious purposes. Guramma v. Mallapa3 established that a parent will give his
daughter a little amount of stable property provided it satisfies the reasonability
standards, taking into account the properties that are owned by the family.

However, it is not permitted for a husband to give his wife any such property
under the "Pious Purposes" provision.

 Gifts to strangers

Only in certain circumstances does the Karta have the authority to give properties
to family members; strangers are never eligible to receive such a gift. If such a gift
is made, it will be considered invalid from the start.

 RIGHT TO COMPROMISE: Karta has the authority to settle conflicts over

household management or property. He has the power to scuttle ongoing lawsuits,
family debts, and other deals. The Karta's compromises can only be contested in
court by heirs on the basis of malfeasance.

LIABILITIES OF KARTA

3
1964 AIR 510, 1964 SCR (4) 497
  Liability to maintain: Karta is responsible for caring for every joint family
member. He may be held liable for maintenance and may also be requested for
payment if he fails to maintain any members.
 Liability to render accounts: Karta is not required to handle family accounts as
long as the family is still one unit, but after the family is divided, he will be held
accountable for keeping track of family assets. Any heir who is dissatisfied with
his accounts may file a lawsuit against Karta in order to uncover the truth and
determine whether or not Karta committed any misappropriation.
 Liability of recovery debts due to the family: He is responsible for collecting
the family's debts.
 Liability to spend reasonably: He has the responsibility to use the joint family
finances only for family reasons.
 Liability not to eliminate coparcenary property: It is the responsibility of the
Karta not to alienate the coparcenary property without any legal necessity or profit
to the state.
 Liability not to start new business: The Karta is responsible for refraining from
starting a new company without the approval of the other coparceners.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF KARTA

A Karta's responsibility is to supply the joint family's members with clothing, food, shelter,
etc. Karta is accountable for a number of things, including:
  Maintenance: Karta is entitled to maintenance together with the rest of the family.
Karta's duty is to provide for the needs of the entire family. He could be held
accountable for both maintenance and maintenance dues if he fails to properly
maintain any member.
 Marriage: The Karta is in charge of the members who aren't married, particularly the
daughters. The Joint Family property will be used to pay the wedding costs.
 Representation: Karta represents the family's interests as its representative. This is
due to the fact that he has obligations and duties related to the family. He is required
to pay all fees and taxes. The family has the right to sue him in connection with any
arrangement or transaction.
 Accounts at the time of partition: Status of a joint family comes to an end due to the
partition. Under Mitakshara Law, it means:

 Severance of status and interest: The choice to remove oneself from the
joint family and take pleasure in an indeterminate and undefined portion
independently is a personal one.
 Actual division of property: It results from the expression of wanting to cut
off. It is a bilateral action, though.
The term "opening of assets" refers to the investigation of shared family
assets. This covers all inherited possessions. According to Mitakshara Law,
Karta is only required to reveal the accounts if he is accused of defrauding,
stealing, or converting assets or property belonging to the joint family. The
coparceners who follow the partition procedure cannot seek the disclosure of
the past dealings of Karta with joint family property or assets if there is no
evidence of misappropriation, fraud, or conversion against the Karta.

CONCLUSION

In a joint Hindu household, Karta occupies a unique position in terms of knowledge and
complexity. Due to its practical components, the Karta concept has been around for many
years and continues to be effective. Every joint family ought to have a Karta to strengthen the
family's cohesiveness with regard to its dealings and endeavours. When considering the
Karta's status, it may be claimed that he has more power and fewer obligations. Karta
occupies a special position when it comes to deciding his position. The parties are required to
abide by the rulings or pronouncements made by the Karta. The Hindu Succession Act of
1956, Section 6, grants females the same rights as sons. The Hindu Succession Act of 1956
prohibits women from becoming Kartas, with the exception of two situations: when a male
family member is either not present or is a juvenile. These two situations are also described in
the Dharmasutras, an ancient text on Hindu law. The government needs to take action to
improve the status of women under other personal laws.

BIBLIOGRAHY

References:

https://blog.ipleaders.in/power-and-position-of-a-karta-under-hindu-law/

https://acadpubl.eu/hub/2018-120-5/4/384.pdf
https://www.lawctopus.com/academike/karta-powers-overview/

http://www.shareyouressays.com/knowledge/10-general-powers-of-a-karta-of-hindu-joint-
family/117738