Don't give women right over deceased husband's property: Petition on pending divorce cases

KOCHI: A wife should have no right over her deceased husband’s property if divorce proceedings were pending at the time of death, relatives of a deceased husband argued before the Kerala high court.
The petition that was considered by the court was filed by the brothers and sisters of KJ Antony of Palluruthy in Kochi. They challenged an order issued by Ernakulam family court that didn’t allow them to join in as parties a petition filed by KJ Antony seeking divorce from his wife.Antony had alleged in the petition that his marriage with a woman from Amaravathy near Fort Kochi in August 2012 is null and void as his consent for marriage was obtained by playing fraud and cheating. In the petition seeking divorce, Antony had alleged that his wife’s parents didn’t reveal her ill-health while obtaining his consent for marriage. On July 28, 2013, Antony had ended his life.
Antony’s sibling then approached the family court seeking to implead in the divorce case by stating that they are entitled to continue the proceedings as legal heirs or representatives of the deceased. The family court issued an order on March 21, 2014 dismissing the impleading petition filed by Antony’s siblings.
In the petition filed to the high court by Antony’s siblings, the family court’s order was challenged. The petition said, "On the death of a husband who filed petition to declare marriage null and void on the ground of fraud and cheating, the divorce petition will not abate. The legal heirs of the deceased husband would be interested in urging that the surviving spouse is not a widow of the deceased and she may not share with other legal heirs, the property of deceased husband."
By not allowing them to implead in the petition filed by Antony for a divorce, the family court is denying the right of the siblings to inherit the property of their brother who died intestate, it was argued.
Considering the case, the high court has directed the family court to allow the plea of Antony’s siblings to join in the case for divorce and ordered for a speedy disposal of the case.