Section 27 of Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 - Maintenance When to Be a Charge
Section 27 explains when a dependant's statutory claim for maintenance can operate as a charge on the estate of a deceased person or on a part of that estate.
Text of Section 27 - Maintenance when to be a charge
27. A dependant's claim for maintenance under this Act shall not be a charge on the estate of the deceased or any portion thereof, unless one has been created by the will of the deceased, by a decree of court, by agreement between the dependant and the owner of the estate or portion, or otherwise.
Meaning and effect of Section 27
The section draws a distinction between a claim for maintenance and a charge on property. A dependant may have a right to claim maintenance under the Act, but that claim does not, merely because it exists, automatically become a charge on the deceased's estate.
For the maintenance claim to bind the estate as a charge, Section 27 requires the charge to have been created through a legally recognised source. The section expressly refers to a will of the deceased, a decree of a court, an agreement between the dependant and the owner of the estate or the relevant portion, or another legally effective mode.
Who is a dependant?
For Chapter III of the Act, the expression dependants is defined in Section 21. The liability of heirs who inherit the estate of a deceased Hindu to maintain qualifying dependants is dealt with in Section 22.
How can a maintenance charge be created?
- By will: the deceased may create a charge for maintenance through a testamentary disposition.
- By decree of court: a court decree may expressly create a charge over specified property.
- By agreement: the dependant and the owner of the estate or the relevant portion may agree to create a charge.
- Otherwise: the concluding words preserve other legally valid methods by which a charge may arise.
Relationship with Sections 26 and 28
Section 26 addresses the priority of debts over the claims of dependants for maintenance, subject to the statutory rule stated there. Section 28 deals with the effect of transfer of property on a dependant's right to receive maintenance from an estate. These provisions should be read together with Section 27 where the dispute concerns whether maintenance is secured against property and whether that obligation can affect a transferee.
Practical legal significance
In a dispute involving inherited property, it is therefore important to identify both the source of the maintenance right and the document or legal event said to have created a charge. Relevant material may include the will, decree, settlement or agreement, title documents, and the terms governing the property against which the charge is asserted.
Official text of the Act
The current Central Act can be checked on the official India Code text of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956. Section 27 appears in Chapter III on maintenance.
Legal text reviewed against the official India Code source. This page provides general legal information and should be read with the current statutory text and applicable judicial decisions.