Source: The Hindustan Times dated 21.01.2014

‘ONLY HINDU WIDOWS CAN CLAIM INTEREST ON JOINT PROPERTY’

MUMBAI: Wives of coparceners are not eligible to claim any interest in the joint property of their Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), the Bombay high court ruled on Saturday. “Only a Hindu widow can claim the interest of her deceased husband in the coparcenary or joint family property for her maintenance,” said j ustice Roshan Dalvi.

Justice Dalvi was hearing a plea filed by Hiten Patel (name changed), who sought partition of the properties bequeathed to him by his deceased mother and mandatory injunction against his father to hand over the properties to him.

Hiten’s mother, who passed away on June 10, 2013, had, in a registered will dated July 2, 2011, bequeathed part of her i ndividual proper t i es and her share in the joint family properties to him. Being the sole beneficiary under her will, Hiten had also sought its validation.

However, justice Dalvi noted that the woman had passed away and her husband is still alive. Therefore, she could not acquire the right of a widow. “Consequently, she had no share and no bequeathable interest in any share,” the judge said and concluded that the bequest of “her share” was “wholly misconceived since her husband was alive on the date of her death and she was not a widow”.

The judge refused to issue any directive pertaining to the joint property of the family at Ahmedabad and the “monies in his mother’s share”. Justice Dalvi also restrained Hiten’s father from alienating a flat at Sion and shares held by his deceased mother.