Make nominee?s name a must

THE ALLAHABAD High Court has suggested to the Reserve Bank of India to make inclusion of nominee?s name mandatory for saving or fixed deposit accounts in single names. ?It will go a long way to serve the purpose of the widows and children who are dragged into long- drawn proceedings in the court for claiming the amount which lawfully belongs to them,? the court said.

THE ALLAHABAD High Court has suggested to the Reserve Bank of India to make inclusion of nominee’s name mandatory for saving or fixed deposit accounts in single names.

HT Image

“It will go a long way to serve the purpose of the widows and children who are dragged into long- drawn proceedings in the court for claiming the amount which lawfully belongs to them,” the court said.

Giving this suggestion, Justice Sunil Ambwani further desired that the valuation for grant of succession certificate, under section 29 of the Administrator General Act 1963, be enhanced from Rs 2 to 5 lakh to save the time of the court and unnecessary harassment to the litigants.

The court observed: “The court has noticed that a large number of cases, in which the assets valued above Rs 2 lalkh, are coming to the Court for grant of letters of administration, mostly for the reasons that the deceased did not give the name of the nominee who is entitled to receive the amount kept in fixed deposit or saving accounts in the bank.”

“Most of these matters are non-contentious and consuming a lot of time of the court and cost of the litigants who are suffering for no fault of theirs,” the court said

The court gave this decision in Testamentary Case no- 9 of 2006, in the matter of goods of the late Dr Mohan Lal Varshney.

To recall, the Administrator General Act 1963 provided for grant of succession certificate, where the valuation of assets was Rs 10,000. It was amended to Rs 20,000, Rs 50,000 and then to Rs 2 lakh vide amendment to the Act made in 1985.

Now, in this decision given in 2006, the court has desired that this amount be enhanced to Rs 5 lakh.