Unregistered Will Valid: Property Distribution Among Heirs Under Indian Law

• An unregistered will is legally valid and enforceable in India if properly executed and attested, as per the Indian Succession Act, 1925.
• Registration of a will is not mandatory; its absence alone does not invalidate it unless challenged on grounds like fraud or coercion.
• Self-acquired property, purchased from one's own earnings, is not considered ancestral property, giving the owner full authority to distribute it via will.
• The Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005, grants daughters equal rights in joint family property, but a valid will dictates distribution regardless of gender.
• If a will covers only part of the property, the remaining assets are treated as intestate property and distributed equally among Class I legal heirs (sons, daughters, widow, mother) under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956.