BABY KURIAN vs THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR
- Court
- Kerala High Court
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WP(C) NO. 659 OF 2026
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BECHU KURIAN THOMAS
TH
WEDNESDAY, THE 9 DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2026 / 18TH BHADRA, 1948
WP(C) NO. 659 OF 2026
PETITIONER :
BABY KURIAN
AGED 65 YEARS
S/O E K BABY @ KORA,
PUTHUPARAMBIL HOUSE,
S.N. PURAM PO, KOTTAYAM,
KERALA -, NOW RESIDING AT 14915
HENDERSON AVE, BAKERSFIELD,
CALIFORNIA, U.S.A -93314,
PIN - 686502
BY ADV SMT.SUMA G.
RESPONDENTS :
1 THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR
KOTTAYAM DISTRICT,
COLLECTORATE BUILDING,
KOTTAYAM - THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR,
PIN - 686002
2 THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER
KOTTAYAM, REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICE,
2ND FLOOR, MINI CIVIL STATION,
UNION CLUB ROAD, PUTHENANGADY,
KOTTAYAM, PIN - 686001
3 THE TAHSILDAR
KOTTAYAM TALUK,
1ST FLOOR,
MINI CIVIL STATION,
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WP(C) NO. 659 OF 2026
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UNION CLUB ROAD,
PUTHENANGADY,
KOTTAYAM,
PIN – 686001
BY SRI.ANIRUDH KADAVIL, GOVERNMENT PLEADER
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION
ON 07.09.2026, THE COURT ON 09.09.2026 DELIVERED THE
FOLLOWING:
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'C.R.'
BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, J.
--------------------------------
W.P.(C) No.659 of 2026
---------------------------------
th
Dated this the 9 day of September, 2026
JUDGMENT
Petitioner challenges the orders rejecting his application for
issuance of a legal heirship certificate of his deceased wife.
2. Petitioner's wife, late Mrs. Lissyamma Abraham died on
29.10.2018, while they were residing in the United States of America (for
short ‘the USA’). Their marriage was solemnized on 14.09.1987 at the
St.John's Orthodox Church, Kooroppada, Kottayam and they have three
daughters, which is reflected from the family membership certificate
dated 24.12.2022, issued by the Village Officer, Kooroppada. Petitioner
and his family, including his deceased wife, are Overseas Citizens of
India. After the death of his wife, petitioner applied to the third
respondent for issuance of a legal heirship certificate. However, the
application was rejected by Ext.P9 order, stating that there is a practical
difficulty to enquire about the legal heirs of the deceased, as she was
residing abroad for several years and even her burial was conducted
abroad. Challenge against the aforesaid order did not succeed at the
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appellate as well as revisional stages and hence the petitioner has
approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.
3. A statement has been filed on behalf of the first respondent
wherein it is mentioned that legal heirship certificates are intended only
for movable assets, the value of which is less than Rs.5,00,000/- as
observed in the Kerala Village Manual as well as the decision in Renuka
K.K. v. State of Kerala and Others [2018 (5) KHC 601]. It is also
stated that there is no provision in the said Manual to deal with a legal
heirship certificate for an immovable property and hence a direction
ought not to be issued.
4. I have heard Smt. Suma G., the learned counsel for the
petitioner as well as Sri. Anirudh Kadavil, the learned Government
Pleader.
5. The petitioner’s application - Ext.P8, for issuance of a legal
heirship certificate of his wife, depicted the reason as ‘for Governmental
and Banking purposes’. The said application was declined, stating that
the deceased was residing in the USA for long and therefore it cannot be
considered as it is not possible to identify the legal heirs. The Revenue
Divisional Officer rejected the appeal, after observing that since details of
persons who have been residing abroad for years cannot be discerned, it
is not possible to identify the legal heirs. Thus the petitioner's application
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has been primarily rejected on the ground that the deceased had been
residing abroad for a long time and hence there is a practical difficulty to
identify the legal heirs of such a person who was residing abroad for long.
6. There is no codified law that deals with applications for issuance
of a legal heirship certificate. However, paragraph 213 of the Village
Office Manual in Kerala Land Revenue Manual, (2019) Volume VI, (for
short, 'Village Manual') refers to persons who can be applicants before the
Village Office for various types of certificates. The said clause states that
persons who have roots in India and those who have renounced their
Indian citizenship are also entitled to apply for various certificates. For
the purpose of easier comprehension, paragraph 213 of the Village
Manual is extracted as below :
“ Applicant – (1). In normal circumstances, it is mandatory for a
person to be an Indian citizen in order to apply for all kinds of
certificates in the revenue department. However, this stipulation is not
applicable for the people who have roots in India, have renounced
Indian citizenship and accepted citizenship elsewhere. Such people can
submit applications for various certificates before the Village Officer
within the limits of the village where they stayed last or before the
Tahsildar concerned. Moreover, foreigners who have obtained land in
India, can submit applications for various certificates pertaining to the
land before the Village Officer where the land is situated or before the
Tahsildar concerned.”
7. From a reading of the above clause, it is evident that the
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petitioner, who has his roots in India can also be an applicant for the
various certificates that can be issued by a Village Officer/Tahsildar.
Hence petitioner’s status as an Overseas Citizen of India cannot be a
fetter on his right to apply for any certificate that can be issued by the
Village Officer/Tahsildar, within the the jurisdiction where such persons
had last resided. Thus, the rejection of petitioner’s application for
issuance of a legal heirship certificate for the reason that he is residing in
the USA is incorrect.
8. A legal heirship certificate is issued by the Tahsildar pursuant to
an application made to the Village Officer. Such a legal heirship
certificate is in effect, for all practical purposes, akin to a certificate of
succession. Such a certificate is issued under the provisions of paragraph
236(1) of the Village Manual. The said provision reads as follows :-
“ 236. Certificate of succession
(1) It has been stipulated that the certificates of succession granted
by the Tahsildar, subject to certain financial limits, shall be sufficient in
lieu of the certificates of succession issued by the Civil Courts for the
purpose of obtaining the amounts due to the deceased Government
servant by their heirs under Article 95(b)(i) of the Kerala Financial
Code, Volume-I, or for the purpose of obtaining the pension arrears of
a deceased service pensioner by their heirs under Rule 170 of Part III
of the Kerala Service Rules, or for the purpose of obtaining the deposit
amount by the heirs in the event of the death of a depositor in the
Treasury Savings Bank under Rule 42(b) of Appendix-3 of the Kerala
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Treasury Code, Volume-II.
In addition to the above circumstances, the Tahsildar may grant a
certificate of succession, subject to a limit of five lakh rupees, in cases
where the heirs are entitled to compensation under a third-party
insurance scheme, or in instances where the heirs are entitled to funds
from liquidators, cooperative societies, banks, and other institutions.
In cases other than those mentioned above, or in cases involving a
dispute, an application shall be submitted for a succession certificate
from the Civil Courts, or for an administration certificate from the
office of the Administrator General in Ernakulam, to determine the
heirs”.
9. The above extracted provision indicates that a certificate of
succession can be issued by the Tahsildar, akin to a legal heirship
certificate, and prescribes a financial limit of Rupees Five Lakhs in certain
specific instances. The provision also mentions that in cases of dispute,
an application has to be submitted to the civil courts for a Succession
Certificate or for an Administration Certificate from the Administrator
General. In Premalatha Subhash v. State of Kerala and Others
[2021 (5) KHC 736], a learned single Judge of this Court observed that,
in the absence of any provision in the Kerala Village Manual, no direction
can be issued to provide a legal heirship certificate for sale of an
immovable property of the deceased person. Similarly, in Anwar
Hussain A v. Tehsildar, Kollam [2026 (2) KHC 107], it was held, while
considering the erstwhile Village Manual, that a legal heirship certificate
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cannot be sought for production before a court and such a certificate can
be issued only if the right to inheritance does not exceed the financial
limit. In Renuka K.K. v. State of Kerala and Others [2018 (5) KHC
601], it was observed that there is a financial limit prescribed in the
Village Manual, while Rule 27 of the Transfer of Registry Rules, 1966,
permit an enquiry to be conducted at the time of applying for mutation
which can be treated as akin to that conducted for issuance of a legal
heirship certificate.
10. In this context, it is worthwhile to mention that a legal heirship
certificate only identifies who the legal heirs of a deceased person are.
The legal heirship certificate cannot confer title. Title to the properties of
a deceased is determined by the principles of law of succession or by
bequest in the form of Will. Legal heirship certificate is generally useful
for administrative and recordical purposes. If in case the certificate
incorporates persons who are not legal heirs, it is always open for
challenge before the appropriate forum.
11. Despite the above, most authorities, governmental or private,
insist upon production of a legal heirship certificate, when any change
relating to the properties of a deceased person has to be carried out in
the records. Be it for sale of a property, or for incorporating the details of
legal heirs in bank accounts, in shares or securities, for claiming
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pensionary benefits, change of name in ration cards, electricity consumer
connections, water connections, etc, a legal heirship certificate is insisted
upon. A common man is compelled to run from pillar to post, to
incorporate such change of name in the records, after the death of a
family member. Unfortunately, there is no statutory prescription
regarding the issuance of a legal heirship certificate. The only procedure
which can be identified, as authorising the issuance of a legal heirship
certificate is the specification, prescribed under the Village Manual.
However, the said Village Manual is neither a law nor a rule that has got
any statutory backing or force. It is only a mode of guidance or set of
guidelines that have been prescribed to guide Village Officers or Revenue
Officers in their functioning.
12. With the limited time available to remain away from their
respective work, the children of the deceased would invariably avoid
incorporating the changes pursuant to the death of a person, which in
turn, can result in confusion in various records maintained by the State.
In this scenario, it is high time, considering the requirement of a legal
heirship certificate being insisted upon by various authorities, that the
State considers enacting a provision of law or rule, which lays down a
proper procedure for issuance of a legal heirship certificate.
13. Of course, the remedy of obtaining a succession certificate is
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available, apart from the possibility of a certificate from the Administrator
General under the Administrators General Act, 1963. However, a
succession certificate can be issued only for debts or securities as
provided under section 370 to section 374 of the Indian Succession Act,
1925, while a certificate under the Administrators General Act, 1963 is
only for the value of a property up to rupees ten lakhs. Nevertheless, as
noted earlier, there are various circumstances that arise on a day to day
basis, where a legal heirship certificate is insisted upon by the authorities.
14. On an analysis of the above provisions of law, it is evident that
there is a vacuum, as far as the legal heirship certificates are concerned
for persons who want to obtain such certificates other than for debts or
securities and for properties with a value of more than rupees five lakhs
and for immovable properties. In cases where there are disputes, it is
possible to assume that a party can be relegated to a civil court to resolve
the dispute, but in cases where there are no disputes raised by any
person, there is still a vacuum, if the value of the property is more than
rupees five lakhs.
15. It is curious to note that a legal heirship certificate is tied to a
financial limit. Legal heirship has no nexus with the quantum or value of
property. A legal heirship certificate only identifies the legal heirs. There
cannot be a change in the status as a legal heir, merely on account of
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the quantum involved. Therefore, it is necessary that a legal heirship
certificate, in cases where there are no disputes, be issued by the
Revenue Authorities as per the Village Manual, irrespective of the
quantum involved. The prescription in paragraph 236 of the Village
Manual, referring to a limit of Rupees Five Lakhs, is, without any legal
basis and has no rationale as well.
16. In this context, it is appropriate to note that the Kerala Land
Revenue Manual is neither a statute nor a legal document but is only a
set of guidelines that guides the officers in the discharge of their
multifarious duties. Reference to the decision in Sohan V.M. v.State of
Kerala [2026 (1) KHC 394] is relevant, in this context. Therefore the
fixation of a financial limit or a monetary quantum in paragraph 236 of
the Village Manual cannot by itself be regarded as a legal restriction in
issuing legal heirship certificates. The decisions in Premalatha Subhash
(supra), Anwar Hussain A (supra) and Renuka K.K. (supra) have
not considered the aforesaid legal implications of the Village Manual.
17. As there is a vacuum, it is appropriate that the State considers
the feasibility of enacting rules in that regard. Until a suitable rule is
made, this court felt it necessary to invoke the power under Article 226 of
the Constitution of India to issue directions to enable the Revenue
Officers to have appropriate guidance to issue legal heirship certificates.
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Since, as noted earlier, a legal heirship certificate only declares who the
legal heirs are, irrespective of the quantum involved, until and unless a
rule is made, the competent Revenue Officer (Tahsildar) ought to be
permitted to issue legal heirship certificates, irrespective of the quantum
involved. This Court fervently hopes that the State will, in the meantime,
consider the absence of a law or Rules in that regard and be advised to
enact a suitable provision for issuing legal heirship certificates, as the
matter is of utmost importance to the people of Kerala.
18. As far as the petitioner is concerned, since an applicant
residing outside India or a person who had renounced his citizenship of
India, is entitled to be regarded as an applicant as per paragraph 213 of
the Village Manual, petitioner's application cannot be rejected on that
ground. Reference to the decision in Anna Jacob v. State of Kerala
[2025:KER:32502], is relevant in this context, as a learned single Judge
of this Court had observed that, paragraph 213 of Village Manual permits
persons residing abroad to submit an application before the Village Officer
within whose limits they had permanently resided for more than six
months.
19. Further, it is noticed from Ext. P2 that a family membership
certificate dated 24.12.2022 has already been issued to the petitioner by
the Village Officer, depicting the details of his family. Obviously an
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enquiry would have been conducted for issuing such a certificate. Hence,
denying the issuance of a legal heirship certificate to the petitioner, in
such circumstances, is unjustified.
Accordingly, the following directions are issued:
rd
(i). Ext.P9, Ext.P25 and Ext.P32 are quashed and the 3
respondent is directed to consider the application of the
petitioner for issuance of a legal heirship certificate, as
expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within an outer period of
three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment,
in the light of the observations made herein as well as the family
relationship certificate already issued.
(ii). Since a legal heirship certificate only states who the legal
heirs of a deceased are, invoking the power under Article 226 of
the Constitution of India, it is declared that, until appropriate
rules are made by the State, the Tahsildars shall be entitled to
issue, legal heirship certificates under paragraph 236 of the
Kerala Village Manual, irrespective of the quantum involved.
(iii). There shall be a further direction to the State Government
to consider enacting a provision, in accordance with law, to
govern the issuance of legal heirship certificates.
The writ petition is disposed of as above.
Sd/-
BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, JUDGE
RKM
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APPENDIX OF WP(C) NO. 659 OF 2026
PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS :
Exhibit P1 A COPY OF THE MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE DATED
14/09/1987
Exhibit P2 THE FAMILY CERTIFICATE ISSUED BY
KOOROPADA VILLAGE DATED 24/12/2022
Exhibit P3 A COPY OF THE OVERSEAS CITIZENS OF INDIA
CERTIFICATE OF THE BABY KURIAN DATED
27/08/2009
Exhibit P4 A COPY OF THE OVERSEAS CITIZENS OF INDIA
CERTIFICATE OF THE JOYLYN KURIAN DATED
17/02/2009
Exhibit P5 A COPY OF THE OVERSEAS CITIZENS OF INDIA
CERTIFICATE OF THE JACQULIN KURIAN DATED
28/04/2010
Exhibit P6 A COPY OF THE OVERSEAS CITIZENS OF INDIA
CERTIFICATE OF THE JASMINE KURIAN DATED
15/04/2010
Exhibit P7 A COPY OF THE DEATH CERTIFICATE DATED
31/10/2018
Exhibit P8 A COPY OF THE APPLICATION FOR THE LEGAL
HEIRSHIP DATED 12/06/2024
Exhibit P9 A COPY OF THE ORDER TLKKTM/3521/2024-B1,
DATED 22/07/2024 OF THE THIRD RESPONDENT
Exhibit P10 A COPY OF THE APPEAL MEMORANDUM DATED
28/12/2024
Exhibit P11 A COPY OF THE ORDER K1/3219/2024/KDIS
DATED 05/02/2025
Exhibit P12 A COPY OF THE DEATH CERTIFICATE DATED
20/02/2025 AND APOSTILLED ON 26/02/2025
Exhibit P13 A COPY OF THE APPEAL MEMORANDUM NUMBERED
874775/25/FC-M1 AND DATED 15/03/2025
Exhibit P14 A COPY OF THE, TAX RECEIPT DATED
17/07/2024 ISSUED BY KOOROPPADA VILLAGE
Exhibit P15 A COPY OF THE LUXURY TAX RECEIPT DATED
05/03/2025 ISSUED BY KOOROPPADA VILLAGE
Exhibit P16 A COPY OF THE PROPERTY TAX RECEIPT DATED
13/12/2024 ISSUED BY KOOROPPADA VILLAGE
Exhibit P17 A COPY OF THE OWNERSHIP CERTIFICATE DATED
11/03/2025 ISSUED BY KOOROPPADA GRAMA
PANCHAYAT
Exhibit P18 A COPY OF THE LETTER/ORDER DATED
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19/04/2025
Exhibit P19 A COPY OF THE MEMO DATED 09/06/2025
Exhibit P20 A COPY OF THE AD CARD DATED 10/06/2025
Exhibit P21 A COPY OF THE MEMO DATED 28/06/2025
Exhibit P22 A COPY OF THE AD CARD DATED 30/06/2025
Exhibit P23 A COPY OF THE ELECTRICITY BILL DATED
02/05/2025
Exhibit P24 A COPY OF THE ENVELOPE ADDRESSED TO THE
WRIT PETITIONER AND SENT FROM THE OFFICE
OF THE SECOND RESPONDENT
Exhibit P25 A COPY OF THE ORDER NO K1-1459/2025/KDIS
DATED 01/07/2025
Exhibit P26 A COPY OF THE AFFIDAVIT OF DEATH AND
HEIRSHIP, ATTESTED BY THE NOTARY PUBLIC
DATED 9 TH DAY OF JULY 2025 AND
APOSTILLED ON 17 TH DAY OF JULY 2025
Exhibit P27 A COPY OF THE REVIEW PETITION DATED
25/07/2025
Exhibit P28 A COPY OF THE ORDER K1/1982/2025/LDIS
DATED 06/08/2025
Exhibit P29 A COPY OF THE MEMORANDUM OF THE REVISION
PETITION 969215/2025/PC/DCKTM DATED
14/08/2025
Exhibit P30 A COPY OF THE LETTER DATED 10/11/2025
Exhibit P31 A COPY OF THE A/D CARD SIGNED 11/11/2025
Exhibit P32 A COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 12/11/2025
Exhibit P33 A COPY OF THE ENVELOPE ADDRESSED TO THE
COUNSEL, BUT SENT TO THE ADDRESS OF THE
WRIT PETITIONER
RESPONDENTS' ANNEXURES :
Annexure R1(A) TRUE COPY OF THE G.O.(MS) NO.359/67/RD
DATED 10/08/1967