(a) The district court and Superior Court shall have original jurisdiction of any civil action of interpleader or in the nature of interpleader filed by any person, firm, corporation, association, or society having in his or its custody or possession any money or property in an amount of a value within the respective jurisdictions of such courts, as the case may be, or having issued a note, bond, certificate, policy of insurance, or other instrument of such amount or value, or providing for the delivery or payment or the loan of money or property of such amount or value, or being under any obligation written or unwritten to such amount, if—
(1) two or more adverse claimants are claiming or may claim to be entitled to such money or property, or to any one or more of the benefits arising by virtue of any note, bond, certificate, policy or other instrument, or arising by virtue of any such obligation; and
(2) the plaintiff has deposited such money or property or has paid the amount of or the loan or other value of such instrument or the amount due under such obligation into the registry of the court, there to abide the judgment of the court, or has given bond payable to the clerk of the court in such amount and with such surety as the court or judge may deem proper, conditioned upon the compliance by the plaintiff with the future order or judgment of the court with respect to the subject matter of the controversy.
(b) Such an action may be entertained although the titles or claims of the conflicting claimants do not have a common origin, or are not identical, but are adverse to and independent of one another.