Haja Maideen v Roshan Begum: Validity of Inter Vivos Gift of HDB Flat under Muslim Law and Housing and Development Act

In Haja Maideen s/o Mohd Ali Maricar v Roshan Begum Md Ali M, the High Court of Singapore addressed the validity of an inter vivos gift (Hibah) of a Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat. The plaintiff, Haja Maideen, sought to sell the flat as administrator of his deceased mother's estate, while the defendant, Roshan Begum, claimed the flat was gifted to her. The court, presided over by Justice Choo Han Teck, ruled that the transfer was void due to the lack of prior written consent from the HDB, as required by the Housing and Development Act. The court granted the orders sought by the plaintiff.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Order granted in terms of prayers one and two stated in the originating summons.

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Judgment

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

Singapore court case regarding the validity of an inter vivos gift (Hibah) of a Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat under Muslim Law and the Housing and Development Act.

1.7 Decision Date

10 July 2017

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party Name	Role	Type	Outcome	Outcome Type	Counsels
Haja Maideen s/o Mohd Ali Maricar	Plaintiff	Individual	Judgment for Plaintiff	Won	Pereira George Barnabas
Roshan Begum Md Ali M	Defendant	Individual	Claim Dismissed	Lost

3. Judges

Judge Name	Title	Delivered Judgment
Choo Han Teck	Judge	Yes

4. Counsels

Counsel Name	Organization
Pereira George Barnabas	Pereira & Tan LLC

4. Facts

The deceased, Zohra Beebi, solely owned the HDB flat.
The deceased passed away on 16 June 2011 in India.
The plaintiff is the deceased's son and the administrator of the estate.
The defendant is the deceased's daughter and resides in the HDB flat.
The deceased purportedly made an inter vivos gift (Hibah) of the HDB flat to the defendant on 22 April 2011.
The Housing Development Board's prior written consent was not obtained for the transfer.
The defendant refuses to move out of the HDB flat.

5. Formal Citations

Haja Maideen s/o Mohd Ali Maricar v Roshan Begum Md Ali M, Originating Summons No 1021 of 2015, [2017] SGHC 164

6. Timeline

Date	Event
2011-06-16	Zohra Beebi @ Johara Beevi w/o A Mohamed Ali Maricar passed away in India.
2011-04-22	Deed of gift (Hibah) executed in India.
2015-01-01	Originating Summons No 1021 of 2015 filed.
2016-08-25	Hearing date.
2016-12-23	MUIS' opinion letter issued.
2017-04-24	Hearing date.
2017-06-28	Hearing date.
2017-07-11	Judgment reserved.

7. Legal Issues

Validity of Inter Vivos Gift (Hibah)
- Outcome: The court held that the inter vivos gift was invalid due to the lack of prior written consent from the Housing Development Board, as required by the Housing and Development Act.
- Category: Substantive

8. Remedies Sought

Order for Sale of Property
Distribution of Sale Proceeds

9. Cause of Actions

Administration of Estate
Declaration of Ownership

10. Practice Areas

Civil Litigation
Real Estate Law

11. Industries

Real Estate

12. Cited Cases

Case Name	Court	Affirmed	Citation	Jurisdiction	Significance
Shafeeg bin Salim Talib and another v Fatimah btw Abud bin Talib and others	High Court	Yes	[2010] 2 SLR 1123	Singapore	Cited for the principle that civil courts have jurisdiction over inter vivos gifts under Muslim law, applying Muslim law to determine the issue.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute Name	Jurisdiction
Housing and Development Act (Cap 129, 2004 Rev Ed)	Singapore
Administration of Muslim Law Act (Cap 3, 2009 Rev Ed)	Singapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

Inter Vivos Gift
Hibah
HDB Flat
Housing and Development Act
Prior Written Consent
Estate
Administrator
Beneficiaries
Inheritance Certificate

15.2 Keywords

Muslim Law
Inter Vivos Gift
Hibah
HDB Flat
Housing and Development Act
Singapore
Estate
Property

16. Subjects

Muslim Law
Property Law
Estate Administration

17. Areas of Law

Muslim Law
Gifts
Housing and Development Law