Question

Mr. Hariharan professes to gift his property at Calicut worth 1 lakh to Ms. Shyamala and by the same instrument another property at Kochi for 5 lakh. As Ms. Shyamala can stay only at one place among the two:

• A. She may retain the property at Calicut and reject the transfer of property at Kochi.
• B. She has to retain the property at Kochi if she wants to retain the property at Calicut
• C. Both Option 1 and Option 2 are true
• D. Both Option 1 and Option 2 are false

Hint:

In composite transfers, rejecting one part may nullify the whole. Accepting one benefit might bind you to another obligation.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

This is a case of a composite or conditional transfer. Under the Indian Contract Act and Transfer of Property Act, if two transfers are made through a single transaction or document, they may be conditional upon each other.
Here, the gift of the Calicut property (worth less) appears dependent on the acceptance of the Kochi property.
Hence, if Ms. Shyamala accepts one, she must accept the other, unless explicitly stated otherwise in the document.