FATEH BIBI ETC. vs CHARAN DASS

The Supreme Court held that the Hindu Law of Inheritance (Amendment) Act, 1929 applies to cases where a Hindu male dies intestate before the Act's operation and is succeeded by a female heir who dies after that date. The Court clarified that the point of time for the applicability of the Act is when the succession opens, which is upon the termination of the life estate. Consequently, the plaintiff, as the sister's son of the last male owner, was entitled to succeed to the estate over the defendant, who was a collateral relative.