To most an inventory is something to do with stock of goods in an establishment. In Goa, an inventory has a different connotation. Upon the death of a person inter-state, his estate is shared among his living relatives according the law established by the Portuguese. It is unique in the sense that it is applicable only in Goa. If feasible, each inheritor takes his part of the property according to his share as indicated in the inventory. If the property cannot be divided, bidding is allowed and the one who bids the highest takes the property while the rest share the money bid. A very equitable system where sons and daughters are treated equally. Cabeca de Casal or head of the family is nominated as the administrator is another unique feature, he is supposed to be the link between the family and the court. He is expected to be truthful in his submissions to the court with regard to the inventory. An inventory does not bestow ownership but using it, the ownership documents can be modified to reflect the current situation.
An inventory is considered the most fair distribution of assets amongst all heirs. There have been cases where wills have been challenged and inventory proceedings initiated. Yet it is not uncommon to hear stories of Goans, especially non-resident Goans where they complain that their property has been transferred to unknown people while they were away. They also complain that since they are on holiday for just three to four weeks they usually do not have the option of starting a court battle and thus are resigned to the fact that they have lost their property. There was that famous case at Porvorim involving a yesteryear sports personality which hit the headlines.
Apparently there are two ways to manipulate an inventory in favour of someone. There may be more ways of doing an unfair inventory, just means exposure is limited to these two methods. Let’s call them Ladru Pedru (LP) type and Legally Perfect, Morally Bankrupt (LPMB) type. This should be sufficient to request the government to do something about the situation as it needs bureaucratic support to be successful.
These scams are done locally, ie village-wise. The perpetrators usually know who in the village is away and which properties are unattended for long. Once they have zeroed in on a target property they find out the exact names of the people who own it, say Ladru Pedru. Ladru Pedru would have died some time back and his heirs, spread around the world or Goa, would not have changed the names in the property documents. They then locate some other person with the same name who is since deceased and strike a deal with his relatives. They will use the name sake and usurp the property, from the resultant sale a part of the proceeds will be shared.
The documents are then produced to show the name sake Ladru Pedru as the owner and the inventory is being done and the properties in question are quickly transferred to the new owners. Having an inventory which makes the new person the owner, ownership documents ie Form I and XIV/ Mutation are they changed in that person’s favour and the property is immediately sold. This first sale is important, it ensures that if the original owner decides to do something about it the situation becomes very complex and not easy to undo without a protracted legal battle.
The LPMB is much more refined. Here, the local person decides to take over the properties and does not involve the other inheritors. So the inventory done is usually legally correct. Morally and ethically its correctness can be debated. All heirs are named, all documents are given, notices are printed as required, but the address for information is one where the actual recipient will not get it, the person making the inventory would be in control. Since no objections are received, an auction is done and the local person bids and becomes the sole heir. Usually this too is done by the local experts, for as an individual it would be difficult to negotiate the entire chain and that too with the required speed and secrecy. Again using this document, the properties ownership documents are changed. Using the new documents a sale is made and again documents are officially corrected.
QED. Quiet Easily Done as the saying goes. However, while it is easy to write about it, the actual procedure to do the inventory and make changes in a property documents are quiet complex and can actually take years because of the inherent safeguards. How come then these smooth operators can complete these procedures in double quick time bypassing the safeguards? This could only imply there is a nexus and therefore it is imperative that the government recognise this challenge.
There will be an issue for the buyers of such properties but surely that has already been established, buyers have to be aware (buyers beware) what they are buying and cannot be allowed to keep stolen property just because they brought it.
With Make in India gaining ground, Brexit aleady decided, both issues will mean that NRGs will be looking at Goa again. When they do return there must be space, they must have access to their ancestral property. They would be looking at a process that makes it easy and fast tracked to get back their properties which have been sold discreetly without their knowledge. The NRI commission can assist.
Blaise Costabir is an alumnus of the Asian Institute of Management and a first generation entrepreneur
