With a little help

My son passed away in 1996. My daughter-in-law recently remarried and left with our two granddaughters, aged 12 and 9. Their household income is not sufficient to meet their needs. I am a businessman. Can I obtain custody of my granddaughters?

Name and address withheld

The expert: The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956, stipulates in no uncertain terms that in the absence of the father, or if the father predeceases the mother, the natural guardian of a Hindu minor would be the mother. A ?minor? has been defined under the Act as a person who has not completed the age of 18 years. Assuming you are a Hindu, your daughter-in-law, despite her having remarried, is the natural guardian of your granddaughters.

Apart from Section 6, which gives the right to the mother in respect of the minor?s person and property in the absence of the father, the Act also gives due importance to the welfare of the minor in all questions regarding guardianship. Therefore, you cannot obtain custody of your granddaughters when they have their mother to look after them. You can always, however, give financial assistance to take care of their needs.

Sitting tight

Last year I purchased a plot which has a house that has been let out. The tenant?s family has been staying there for a very long time. While the registration of land was in process, the tenant died. His son asked for six months? time to vacate the house. Now he is not vacating the house nor has he paid any rent for over a year now. Local leaders are supporting him and encouraging him to demand a hefty sum from me. The police are not doing anything to help me out. The person from whom I purchased the plot isn?t interfering in this matter. If this matter reaches the court, do I have any chances of winning the case? Can this matter be settled out of court?

Name and address withheld

The expert: Firstly, all matters can be settled out of court provided the parties are willing to negotiate and arrive at a mutually acceptable solution to the dispute in question. If you want to institute legal proceedings, you could rely on Chapter IV of The West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, 1997, wherein a landlord can has the right to recovery of immediate possession of any premises let out if he can show a reasonable requirement of the premises.

As your tenant?s son has not been paying rent for over a year, you can also take recourse to Section 6 of the Act that entitles a landlord to make an application for eviction to the controller on the ground of non-payment of rent for three months within a period of 12 months or where the landlord reasonably requires the premises for his own occupation and is not in possession of any suitable accommodation within the same municipality. Such an application can also be made where the tenant has been given notice to quit but has failed to deliver vacant possession of the premises despite thereof. However, under Section 6(2), you would have to wait for one year from the date of acquiring the property before taking out proceedings for recovery of the same. You should also be in a position to prove that you have never demanded or accepted rent from the son as that would amount to recognising him as a tenant of the premises. Lastly, you could lodge an FIR in the local police station stating all relevant facts including the action of the local leaders.

Against the plan

I purchased a flat in a multi-storeyed building through a bank loan scheme. Twelve other families are staying in the building. Initially, there were various problems with the flats. Some of these were attended to by the promoter while the residents had to take care of some at their own expense. Still, there are a few more problems and the promoter is not taking any steps to correct those. He is also not issuing the completion certificate on some pretext or the other. As a result of this we are still unable to pay our taxes or get mutation done. What should we do now? It is prudent to mention here that there are some deviations between the sanctioned plan and the actual construction.

Name and address withheld

The expert: You could file a complaint before the Consumer District Redressal Forum against the promoter. The jurisdiction of the District Forum extends to complaints where the value of the goods or services and the compensation claimed does not exceed Rs 5 lakh. You will have to go before the State Commission if the valuation is higher. The District Forum will not admit a complaint unless it is filed within two years from the date on which the cause of action has arisen. Under Section 403 of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation Act, 1980, a notice has to be sent to the municipal commissioner within a month of the completion of erection of a building, together with a certificate, after which, permission to occupy such building is given by the municipal commissioner. Therefore, the promoter should have issued the completion certificate before the flats were occupied by the residents. You could state this and all other relevant facts in your complaint.

‘Your wife has to apply for alimony’

I am a 31-year-old man working in a computer firm, earning about Rs 13,000 a month. My wife works in a private firm as a secretary to the director and earns nearly half my salary. We’ve been married for over four years with a son who is more than a year old. My wife always asked for pocket money which I refused to give her as she is earning. She’s been living with her mother since the delivery of our son and has refused to come back until I promise to give her pocket allowance. She doesn’t allow me to meet our son. I’ve been sending her Rs 1,000 a month for our son. If we file for divorce, what will I have to provide for her? I’ve heard she’s still working.

Name and address withheld

The expert: Under sections 13 and 13B of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, you can file for divorce or divorce by mutual consent respectively. As your wife has been living with her mother for more than a year, you can file for divorce under Section 13 on the ground of desertion, or on the ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage. For ‘desertion’, you would have to give evidence that your wife’s going to live with your in-law was against your wishes and without sufficient cause. Alternatively, you can also file for divorce by mutual consent on the ground that you have been living separately for more than a year. However, bear in mind that a petition for divorce has to be presented before the appropriate district court within the local limits of whose ordinary original civil jurisdiction the marriage was solemnised, or the respondent (in this case, your wife) resides, the parties to the marriage last resided together, or the petitioner (you) is residing at the time of the presentation of the petition in case the respondent is, at that time, residing outside India.

Under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and the Special Marriage Act, 1954, any party can apply before a court of competent jurisdiction for an order for maintenance and permanent alimony at the time of passing a decree or any time subsequent thereto. As you say your wife is working, the court will consider both your incomes and other circumstances before passing an order directing you to pay the amount asked for, provided, of course, your wife makes an application for such under Section 25 of the Act. You will be given an opportunity to explain your present circumstances before the court and ask for a decrease in the quantum of payment.