Karnataka HC Upholds Auction Of Entire Partition Property, Including Co-Heir’s Occupied Portion, After 10-Way Division Found Infeasible

The petitioner challenged an order in final decree proceedings directing the public auction of the entire suit property in a partition suit.

The petitioner, who resided in part of the property, argued that the occupied portion should be excluded from the auction. The Court Commissioner had reported that the property could not feasibly be divided into ten shares and that division would require reserving a substantial area for access, reducing the usable extent of each share.

The final decree is to give effect to the shares declared in the preliminary decree, and the Court may order sale where division of the property into those shares is not feasible.

A proposed exclusion from sale must be supported by material demonstrating its feasibility and must not prejudice the other decree-holders’ entitlement to their share of the property or its value.

The judgment cites no specific statutory provision or precedent.

The Commissioner’s report established that division into ten shares was impracticable and would diminish the usable extent of each share because of the access area required.

The petitioner’s request to exclude the occupied portion was unsupported by any report showing that such exclusion was feasible. The Court also considered that exclusion could deprive the other parties of the consideration or rights due to them under the partition decree. It therefore found no error in the Trial Court’s direction to auction the entire property.

It found no error or infirmity warranting interference and dismissed the writ petition.