Under Section 15(2)(b) of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, upon whose heirs does property inherited by a female Hindu from her husband devolve where she dies issueless and intestate?

It devolves upon the heirs of the husband, not upon the general heirs specified in Section 15(1) of the Hindu Succession Act. Section 15(2)(b) provides that property inherited by a female Hindu from her husband or father-in-law shall, in the absence of any son or daughter of the deceased, including children of a predeceased son or daughter, devolve upon the heirs of the husband.

Indian Succession Act, 1925 — s.63(c) — Evidence Act — s.69 — Hindu Succession Act, 1956 — s.15(2)(b) — Proof of Wills — Attestation — Testamentary capacity — Suspicious circumstances — Devolution on intestacy — Indian Succession Act, 1925 — s.63(c) — Attestation — Scribe without animus attestandi — Held: An unprivileged Will must be attested by two or more witnesses who sign with animus attestandi. A scribe who signs only as writer, without that intention, is not an attesting witness and cannot be substituted for either named witness. (¶59, 67) Evidence Act — s.69 — Proof of Wills — Condition precedent for substituted proof — Held further: Section 69 permits proof by handwriting only after the propounder proves that no attesting witness can be found. An interested beneficiary's unrebutted but unparticularised assertion of death does not reverse the statutory burden or establish the condition precedent. (¶73, 84, 96) Indian Succession Act, 1925 — s.59 — Testamentary capacity — Suspicious circumstances considered cumulatively — Held further: Proof of a testatrix's mark establishes only the physical act, not a sound disposing mind, understanding of the dispositions, or voluntary adoption. Suspicious circumstances surrounding a Will must be considered cumulatively, with cogent evidence needed to remove the doubt. (¶104, 121, 134) Hindu Succession Act, 1956 — s.15(2)(b) — Devolution on intestacy — Heirs of the husband — Held further: Will (Ex.B-13) was not proved, so Arukkaniammal must be treated as having died intestate, and her properties devolve upon the heirs of her husband under Section 15(2)(b). The appeals are allowed and the Trial Court's decree stands restored. (¶135, 136, 140)

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