In Recovery of Maintenance case if daughter expired case will be dismissed

Dear Client,
The right to future maintenance typically ends with the death of the person who was entitled to receive it. In the event of a petitioner/beneficiary's death, the right to claim or receive maintenance typically does not survive unless the arrears of maintenance had already accrued before the death. The nominee is the trustee of the funds or properties of the deceased owner and is legally bound to transfer the properties to the legal heirs/beneficiaries of the deceased owner once they stake their claim. So, mother being a legal heir of the deceased daughter can claim an arrears of maintenance if accrued before her death, but not thereafter because on the demise of petitioner no.2, the right to claim of maintenace by petitioner no.1, mother ceased. The Hon'ble Madras High Court, in the case of Annadurai v Jaya, 2023 SCC OnLine Mad 2604, Order dated: 21-04-2023, ruled that as the arrears of maintenance accrued till the death of the respondent's daughter, therefore, the Judge of the trial court rightly impleaded the mother of the deceased daughter in the petition for arrears of maintenance. The Court also took note of, Section 6 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, (‘TP Act') and said that only the arrears of maintenance were due in the nature of property, which is heritable, but a right to future maintenance is however not transferable or heritable by virtue of Section 6(dd) of TP Act. So far as the arrears of maintenance is concerned, it is a property of wife as per explanation 2 Section 14 of Hindu Succession Act. Thus, the arrears of maintenance is the property including both movable and immovable property acquired by a Hindu under a decree.

Dear Sir,


Being a nominee in the RD account does not make her the sole owner of the amount; she merely holds the amount in trust for legal heirs. However, as the sole surviving parent, she is also the legal heir. Since the compromise was for ₹7 lakh and ₹3.5 lakh was paid into the RD of the deceased child, if the mother is now seeking the balance on account of the child’s maintenance, the claim does not survive.