The Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, does not override the provisions of the Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957, and Muslims owning properties have the right to transfer properties through “settlement deeds,” under the 1957 Act, said the High Court of Karnataka.
“The application of the 1957 Act is not dependent on religious faith or belief... In other words, the Act is religion-neutral, and any person competent to contract can execute a deed of settlement in respect of the property owned by him or her, whether movable or immovable, irrespective of his or her religious faith or belief,” the court observed.
Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde passed the order while setting aside a decree passed in 2013 by a Bengaluru city civil court, which had set aside settlement deeds registered in 1965 by T.A. Abdul Jabbar, who owned several properties. The civil court had ruled that “there is no concept of transfer by way of ‘settlement’ to settle the properties among the Mohammadans.” The High Court passed the order while allowing the petition filed by Sultan Mohiyuddin and two others, residents of Jayanagar in Bengaluru, challenging the civil court’s order.
