By S&S Co. Advocates & Solicitors · Published 30 January 2026 · Informational content, not legal advice
About this article: A general explainer prepared by S&S Co. Advocates & Solicitors on a recurring type of dispute. It does not report a specific judgment or order, names no parties and gives no case citation, so it should not be cited as authority. Law and practice change; please verify against the current statute and primary sources before relying on it.
Under Sections 122 and 123 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, a gift of immovable property is made by a registered instrument signed by the donor and attested by at least two witnesses, and it must be accepted by or on behalf of the donee during the donor's lifetime. A gift that is complete in this way transfers ownership.
Section 126 allows revocation only where the parties have agreed that on the happening of a specified event, not dependent on the donor's will, the gift will be suspended or revoked, or in cases where a contract could be rescinded, such as fraud, coercion, misrepresentation or undue influence. A donor cannot revoke a completed gift because of a change of mind or a later falling out, and cannot read a power of revocation into a deed that does not have one. Where undue influence is alleged, courts scrutinise the circumstances closely, particularly where the donor is elderly and the donee is in a position of trust, and the burden of showing that the gift was freely made can fall on the person who relies on it.
A plea of inadequate consideration is not a ground, because a gift is made without consideration. Separately, Section 23 of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 allows a senior citizen's transfer to be declared void in certain cases where it was made subject to a condition of care, and that condition is not met.