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Section 136: Bequest to such of certain persons as shall be surviving at some period not specified

Indian Succession Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1925
Section 135 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 137

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 136

Section 136 establishes the statutory rule for determining the period of survivorship when a bequest is made to such of certain persons as shall be surviving, but no specific period is named.

  • Presumption of Testator's Death Period: Where a bequest is made to such of certain persons as shall be surviving, and no period of survivorship is specified, the bequest goes to those who survive the testator.
  • Contextual Construction: The presumption applies unless a contrary intention appears from the text or scheme of the will.
  • Immediate Vesting: Beneficiaries surviving the testator take vested absolute interests immediately upon the testator's demise.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Navneet Lal v. Gokul (1976) 1 SCC 630: The Supreme Court noted that statutory construction rules under Section 136 resolve ambiguities regarding survivorship by anchoring vesting to the exact moment the will takes effect—the testator's death.
  • Rameshwar Bakhsh Singh v. Balraj Kuar AIR 1935 PC 187: The Privy Council held that where a gift is made to 'surviving children' without more, the class is determined as on the date of the testator's demise.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

To avoid litigation under Section 136, will draftsmen should explicitly specify the survivorship point (e.g. 'to such of my children as shall survive me' or 'as shall survive the death of my wife, the life-tenant'); absent such words, Section 136 fixes it at the testator's death.

Section 135 All 391 Sections of Indian Succession Act Section 137