Section 12 of HSA : Section 12: Order Of Succession Among Agnates And Congnates

Explanation using Example

Imagine a situation where a Hindu man dies without leaving a will. He has no immediate family but is survived by two relatives: a cousin from his father's side (agnate) and a cousin from his mother's side (cognate). According to Section 12 of The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, the order of succession would first consider the agnate over the cognate.

If both cousins were agnates or both were cognates, the succession rules would apply as follows:

• If one cousin was the son of the deceased man's paternal uncle (fewer degrees of ascent), while the other was the grandson of the same paternal uncle (more degrees of ascent), Rule 1 would prefer the son of the paternal uncle as he has fewer degrees of ascent.
• If both cousins were at the same level of ascent (e.g., both are sons of the deceased man's paternal uncles), but one had children (degrees of descent) while the other did not, Rule 2 would prefer the cousin without children as he has fewer degrees of descent.
• If both cousins were sons of the deceased man's paternal uncles and neither had children, Rule 3 would apply, and both would inherit simultaneously as they are equally related to the deceased and neither is entitled to be preferred over the other under Rules 1 or 2.