Response

Nominee is somebody who will receive the asset upon the death of the owner/holder. A legal heir means any person, male or female, who is entitled to succeed to the property of a deceased person under a will or as per the succession laws.

However, by virtue of the nomination or the transfer of the flat/shares to the nominee , the nominee does not become the owner of the flat/shares or become entitled to sell/transfer the flat to any third party.
The purpose of the nomination is to make certain the person with whom the society has to deal with.
The true owners of the flat/shares are the legal heirs of the deceased person and the flat/shares can be sold only by such legal heirs (or with their consent); the role of the nominee is to hold the flat in trust for such legal heirs.
So, even though the flat has been transferred to rhe client and his mother as nominee, they will not acquire any interest in the flat merely by virtue of holding the flat as a nominee.
As a nominee, they holds the flat in trust for the legal heirs of the deceased and they will be bound to transfer the flat in the name of such legal heirs and will not be legally entitled to sell/transfer the flat to any third party without the daughter’s consent.
Accordingly, the daughter as legal heirs to the deceased , would be entitled to a share in the flats and the nominee would not be able to transfer the said flats without her consent.

Reference: Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960 has set some rules reguarding transfer of flat in co operative housing society.
It states that upon the ownerÕs death, the society must transfer the flat and shares in the society to the ownerÕs nominee.
The Supreme Court in 2016, in the landmark case of-
Indrani Wahi vs Registrar of Co-operative Society and others – held that a co-operative society was bound by the nomination made by the deceased and that it was bound to transfer the shares to the nominee.

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LAWAYZ-2023-353