Ancestral Land Partition in Patna: Vanshavali, Deed & Mutation

Short answer: partitioning ancestral land in Patna or anywhere in Bihar takes three steps: (1) a vanshavali (family tree) that lists every heir, daughters included; (2) a written partition, ideally a registered partition deed, which for inherited or family property costs just ₹50 stamp duty + ₹50 registration fee in Bihar; and (3) dakhil-kharij (mutation), so each co-sharer gets a separate jamabandi. Mutation is free and should be applied for within 90 days of the partition. As long as the jamabandi stays in a grandfather's or great-grandfather's name, the land on paper belongs to the whole family, not to any one person.

A typical case: 12 kattha in a village of Naubatpur circle is still recorded in the grandfather's name. The father has passed away. Two brothers live in Patna and a sister is married. The elder brother wants to sell his share, and the buyer asks the obvious questions: "Where is the partition? Where is your sister's consent?" A lot of land around Patna is stuck in exactly this position. The steps below are for it.

Partitioning ancestral land in Patna: the whole process

What is a vanshavali and how is it made in Bihar?

A vanshavali (also called kursinama) is the family tree that shows how land passed from the raiyat named in the records to today's heirs: how many sons and daughters each person had, who has died, and who the children of a deceased heir are. It is the first paper you need for a partition, for an inheritance mutation and for the special survey.

• For mutation: the Revenue Department's FAQ says an inheritance (intestate) mutation needs the death certificate and the vanshavali.
• For the special survey: raiyats file their vanshavali in Prapatra 3(1) (in municipal areas, since the June 2026 rules amendment, Form 3(1)(A)). According to the department's survey FAQ (Q46), it is verified through the village gram sabha, the panchayat sevak or the chowkidar/dafadar. If the heirs no longer live in the village (say the family has moved to Patna city or out of Bihar), the vanshavali is still prepared in that revenue village, with help from the mukhiya, panchayat samiti member, ward member, sarpanch or chowkidar (Q12).
• Who issues it? In villages, the sarpanch. News reports from December 2025 say the Revenue Department has empowered the Circle Officer (CO) to issue vanshavali in municipal corporation, municipal council and nagar panchayat areas. We could not find the order itself on the department's website, so for land inside Patna city, confirm with your circle office before applying. (All Patna circle offices and CO numbers)

The most common vanshavali mistake is leaving out married daughters, the children of a brother who has died, or children from a second marriage. Later, one of them objects to the mutation and the whole partition stalls. Write names, father's/husband's names and relationships exactly as they appear in official records.

Who gets what share in ancestral land? Daughters too

In Hindu families, shares are decided by the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Two points matter most:

• In ancestral (joint family) property, a daughter has the same right as a son. Since the 2005 amendment, Section 6 makes a daughter a coparcener by birth, with the same rights and liabilities as a son. Section 6 sets no condition about marriage. In Vineeta Sharma v. Rakesh Sharma (11 August 2020), the Supreme Court held that this applies whether the daughter was born before or after 2005, and that the father need not have been alive on 9.9.2005. Partitions or sales completed before 20 December 2004 are not reopened.
• A person's own property, if they die without a will, goes to the "Class I" heirs, who include the son, daughter, widow and mother; the daughter inherits at the same time as the son and the widow, not after them. The survey FAQ (Q65) gives a worked example: a Hindu man who leaves one son, one daughter, his mother and his father has the khata opened 1/3 each for the son, daughter and mother. The father gets nothing, because a father is not a Class I heir.

Whether the land is ancestral or self-acquired, who died when, and whether there is a will all change the shares, and every family is different. Muslim and Christian families follow different laws. Have a lawyer look at your case before the shares go on paper. If a brother or sister does not want their share, they should give it up through a registered release deed (haq-tyag), not just verbally (cost below).

Ways to partition, and which ones mutation accepts

Per the Revenue Department's mutation FAQ (Q4), a partitioned holding can be mutated on the basis of any one of these:

Why an oral partition is not enough: in villages around Patna you often hear "the fields were divided in father's time", with nothing on paper. In Vineeta Sharma the Supreme Court said that a plea of oral partition, or an unregistered memorandum of partition, will not be accepted against a daughter's coparcenary right. The statutory modes are a registered partition deed or a court decree; an oral partition may be accepted only in exceptional cases backed by public documents. Bottom line: even a partition that has already happened should now be put on a registered deed.

What does registering a partition deed cost in Bihar?

From the Registration Department's stamp duty and fee table (page 6, serial 39, Partition Deed):

So partition is cheap and release is not. If your sister is to get land, giving her a separate piece in the partition itself costs ₹100. Other costs (deed writer, scanning) and gift/settlement rates are in our Patna registry charges guide. Confirm with your sub-registry office what counts as "family property" under the table.

Getting a separate jamabandi for each co-sharer

A partition deed does not change the jamabandi by itself. To get a separate jamabandi in each co-sharer's name you need dakhil-kharij (partition mutation):

• Where: "Online dakhil-kharij" on biharbhumi.bihar.gov.in, from your own login. Step-by-step: online dakhil-kharij guide.
• Papers: partition deed/order, vanshavali, the ancestor's death certificate, and the names and mobile numbers of all co-sharers.
• Fix the record first: if the online jamabandi has the wrong khata, khesra or area, correct it through Parimarjan Plus first. The department followed the same order in its 2025 Revenue Maha-Abhiyan: correction first, then partition mutation.
• Deadline: apply within 90 days of the partition; after that you must attach a delay condonation petition.
• Fee and time: mutation is completely free. The CO must decide within 35 working days if there is no objection, and 75 working days if there is one.

News reports from December 2025 say Bihar Bhumi has added a single "inheritance-cum-partition" application, so heirs no longer need separate mutations one by one. Look for this option when you apply; if you can't find it, ask your halka karmachari or circle office.

A brother sold ancestral land without partition: what now?

The Revenue Department's mutation FAQ (Q22) answers exactly this. A sale deed alone does not change ownership in the land records; that needs mutation. When the buyer applies for dakhil-kharij, you can file an objection and put your case, and if the objection is upheld, the CO will not transfer the record.

• How you find out: switch on SMS alerts on your jamabandi and keep checking the mutation applications filed on your plot on Bihar Bhumi. How: how to avoid land fraud in Patna.
• What the buyer needs: per the FAQ (Q6), if land is acquired from someone other than the jamabandi raiyat, the mutation must include the vanshavali, proof of the seller's relationship to the jamabandi raiyat, and a consent letter from the other co-sharers.
• The registry itself will go through: in Samiullah v. State of Bihar (7 November 2025) the Supreme Court struck down the Bihar Registration Rules provision (Rule 19 (xvii) and (xviii)) that let registration be refused when the jamabandi was not in the seller's name. So a registered sale deed is no proof that the seller held full title. That check is on the buyer.

Buying ancestral land in Patna? Confirm these 6 things

1. Whose name is the jamabandi in? If it is a grandfather's or father's, the seller is not the sole owner.
2. Get the vanshavali and check that it includes daughters and the children of deceased heirs.
3. Every heir either joins the sale deed as a seller or has a registered release or partition deed. In our view, a notarised "consent letter" alone is not enough.
4. The khesra that fell to the seller in the partition is the one being sold to you, and it is the same piece on the map (how to view the Bhu-Naksha map).
5. No mutation objection, revenue court case or civil suit is pending on that plot.
6. Best order: the family partitions first and the seller gets a separate jamabandi, then the sale deed. It takes a little longer and saves years of dispute.

The full list of papers: plot buying guide for Patna.

If the family can't agree on the partition

Only a lawyer who has seen your papers can say which route fits your case. Before going to court, try once more to sit down as a family and register a partition deed; it is the cheapest option in both money and time.

What should you do? (our advice)

• Don't put the partition off. Every generation adds heirs and makes agreement harder. Three siblings today can be twelve cousins in twenty years.
• Register the partition. For family property the government cost is ₹100 in all, far cheaper than a lawsuit later.
• Include the daughters: either carve out their share in the partition, or let them release it of their own free will through a registered deed. A partition that leaves them out can be challenged later.
• Apply for mutation within 90 days of the partition and switch on SMS alerts on the new jamabandi.
• Living outside Patna (Delhi, Bengaluru, the Gulf)? Be present for the partition or give a registered power of attorney. How: buying property in Patna from outside.
• All government land records in one place: Bihar land records online guide.

Ancestral land partition: FAQs

1. How do I partition ancestral land in Bihar?

   Check the jamabandi and khatiyan on Bihar Bhumi, prepare a vanshavali of all heirs, agree on shares and khesra numbers, register a partition deed signed by all co-sharers at the sub-registry office, and apply for mutation on Bihar Bhumi within 90 days so each co-sharer gets a separate jamabandi.

2. What is the stamp duty on a partition deed in Bihar?

   Per the Registration Department's table, a partition deed for inherited or family property costs ₹50 stamp duty and ₹50 registration fee. Other partitions attract higher duty under Article 45, and a 2% registration fee that leaves out the largest share. Deed writer and scanning charges are extra.

3. How is a vanshavali made in Bihar and who issues it?

   A vanshavali lists the whole family from the raiyat named in the jamabandi or khatiyan down to every living heir. In villages it is issued by the sarpanch. News reports from December 2025 say Circle Officers can now issue it in urban local body areas; confirm with your circle office for land in Patna city. In the special survey it is filed in Prapatra 3(1), or Form 3(1)(A) in municipal areas such as Patna city.

4. Does a married daughter have a share in her father's ancestral land?

   Under Section 6 of the Hindu Succession Act (2005 amendment), a daughter is a coparcener by birth with the same rights as a son, and the section sets no condition about marriage. The Supreme Court held in 2020 that this covers daughters born before 2005 and does not need the father to have been alive in 2005. Partitions completed before 20 December 2004 are not reopened.

5. Can mutation be done on an oral or mutual partition?

   Per the Revenue Department's FAQ, a mutual partition paper signed by all co-sharers, or a panchayati partition, together with everyone's written consent, is accepted for mutation. But a purely oral partition is weak in court later, so it is better to convert it into a registered partition deed.

6. What if a co-sharer sells the land before partition?

   Per the Revenue Department's FAQ, a sale deed alone does not change ownership in the records. When the buyer applies for mutation, file an objection to that case online on Bihar Bhumi. If the objection is upheld, the CO will not transfer the record. Talk to a lawyer about cancelling the deed or claiming your share.

7. The jamabandi is in my grandfather's name. Can I sell the land?

   Since the Supreme Court's November 2025 judgment, registration cannot be refused only because the jamabandi is not in the seller's name. But you can sell only your own share, and the buyer's mutation will need the vanshavali, proof of relationship and the other co-sharers' consent. The safe order is partition and a separate jamabandi first, then the sale.

This article is based on the mutation FAQ, special survey FAQ, citizen service notices and Revenue Maha-Abhiyan page of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department, Bihar, the Registration Department's stamp duty and fee table, and Supreme Court judgments, as available on 18 October 2026. The points on who issues the vanshavali and the "inheritance-cum-partition" application come from news reports; confirm them with your circle office. This is general information, not legal advice. Talk to a lawyer with your papers before fixing shares, drafting a partition deed or acting in any dispute.