HC rejects petition seeking transfer of bonds to wife after Jain man takes sanyas | Mumbai news

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court last Thursday dismissed a petition filed by a city resident, seeking the transfer of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) bonds held by her husband to her and her mother-in-law’s names, following his and his children’s renunciation of worldly life and entry into the Jain sanyas order.

A division bench of justice Revati Mohite Dere and justice Dr. Neela Gokhale dismissed the petition on technical grounds that the issue could not be addressed in writ jurisdiction by claiming that spiritual renunciation amounted to “civil death”, and his legal heirs were entitled to the bonds.

The court further noted that there are several pre-requisites to declare a person as having gone through a “civil death” on account of their decision to become sanyasi (monk).

“The issue as to whether Manoj and his children, i.e., his other legal heirs, have taken sanyas is a mixed question of facts and law,” said the bench, adding that the Delhi high court has in a similar case observed that “the mere fact that a person declares that he has become a sanyasi or that he has described himself as such, or wears clothes ordinarily worn by sanyasis would not make him a sanyasi. He must not only retire from the worldly interests and become dead to the world, but to attain this, he must perform necessary ceremonies without which renunciation will not be complete”.

The petitioners, Nirmla Zaverchand Dedhia and Chhaya Manoj Dedhia, the mother and wife of Manoj Zaverchand Dedhia, respectively, sought the transfer of RBI bonds held in his name to their names. Manoj Dedhia had renounced worldly life along with his children and become a Jain sanyasi on November 20, 2022.

The petitioners contended that according to Jain religious customs, once an individual becomes a sanyasi, they forfeit all legal rights over their property. As such, they argued that the assets held by Manoj Dedhia, including the RBI bonds, should pass to his legal heirs.

The RBI bonds, which were issued in Dedhia’s name, were due to mature in September 2026. The petitioners had approached HDFC Bank, seeking the transfer of the bonds to their names following Manoj’s decision to become a sanyasi.

However, HDFC Bank refused to process the request, asserting that the bonds were non-transferable unless the bondholder passed away, as per RBI guidelines. Additionally, the bank raised concerns over the absence of a formal succession certificate or probate, which would legally authorise the transfer of the bonds.

In response, the petitioners contended that Jain religious renunciation or sanyas constitutes “civil death”, and as such, Manoj no longer had any rights to the bonds or his other property.

They argued that all of Manoj’s properties should immediately devolve to his family members, including the bonds, as he had renounced worldly affairs. They submitted several documents, including an affidavit from Manoj himself, affirming that he had no objection to the bonds being transferred to the petitioners’ names.

They also included photographs of the sanyas ceremonies and other related documents to support their claim that Manoj, along with his children, had taken sanyas. Despite these submissions, the bank did not accept these documents as conclusive proof.

The petitioners, therefore, approached the high court for relief. The bench, however, contended that determining whether Manoj and his children had truly taken sanyas was a mixed question of fact and law, which could not be adjudicated in a writ petition at the initial stage.