Postal Manual Vol. VIII - India Post

e sent to the Head of the Circle, unless the withdrawal may be permitted without reference to the
Head of the Circle, under a certificate issued at the time the account was opened. The Head of the
Circle should be guided in issuing orders by rule 41 of the Rules for Depositors.
NOTE 1. – When a Hindu minor has been given in adoption, the adoptive father is the legal
guardian of the minor, and payment can be allowed only on his signature, the natural father having,
in such a case, no right to deal with the account.
NOTE 2.- In the case of the child of a Kulin Brahmin, who has more than one wife and does
not live with them, the Head of the Circle, may in his discretion, allow the application and warrant
to be signed by the mother.
NOTE 3.- In the case of Hindus, the father, mother, or any other relative, ceases to be the
guardian of a female minor after her marriage, when her husband becomes her natural and sole
guardian. Accordingly, during the minority of a married female minor, her husband alone is
entitled to withdraw money from an account opened on her behalf. In the case of Muslims
however, the husband should be allowed to make withdrawals from the account opened on behalf
of his minor wife, only on the production of an order from a competent court appointing him
guardian of the minor’s property, or on the production of the written consent of the minor’s father,
which should be attested by a responsible officer of the Post Office.
NOTE 4.- When the husband of a female minor is himself a minor, then, if the husband is a
member of a Hindu undivided family, his father as the Karta or managing member of the family
would be the guardian of the property of his son’s minor wife. If the husband be living separate
from his father, he (the husband) alone would be entitled to the guardianship of the property of his
minor wife, but he would be under disability, and for the purpose of management, it would be
necessary to have a guardian appointed by a court. The minor husband’s own guardian cannot be
treated as the guardian of his minor wife, unless appointed to that office by a court.
NOTE 5. – For payment of interest on an account opened on behalf of a minor for any period
after the date on which the minor attains his majority. – See Rule 57(2).
59. Issue of duplicate pass-book. – When the balance at credit of a Savings Bank account
is less than Rs. 100 the Head of the Circle may, at his discretion, grant exemption from the
payment of the usual fee for the issue of the duplicate pass-book or sanction refund of the fee
already paid, provided the pass-book is lost or spoiled in circumstances over which the depositor
had no control. In other cases the exemption will be granted only when the pass-book is lost or
spoiled through the fault of the Post Office.
60. Opening and closing of public accounts. – (1) When an application to open a public
account is received by the Head of the Audit Office, in every case which he does not consider to be
clearly and undoubtedly within the rules.
(2) The Head of a Circle is empowered to direct that the public account be closed, should
its object at any time be such that the account could not under the rules be opened as public
account.
NOTE – The opening of public accounts in the P.O. Savings Bank on behalf of “Cemetery
Funds” should not (except in the Madras Presidency) be authorised by the Head of the Circle,
when the money is collected for credit to Government.
61. Intimation from Audit Office regarding closing of public accounts. – When the
Audit Office considers that a public accounts should be closed, owing to the fact that it was opened