In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court has held that a person convicted of causing dowry death is disqualified from inheriting the property of the deceased wife under Section 25 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. The judgment, delivered by Justice N.J. Jamadar on July 2, 2024, in Testamentary Petition No. 807 of 2020, expands the interpretation of “murder” in the context of inheritance laws.
The case arose from a petition filed by a father seeking a succession certificate for his deceased daughter’s assets. The daughter had died in February 2014, barely nine months after her marriage. In July 2019, her husband and in-laws were convicted of causing her dowry death under Section 304-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentenced to imprisonment.
The petitioner argued that the husband and in-laws were disqualified from inheriting the deceased’s property due to their conviction. However, the High Court’s testamentary department objected, stating that a person convicted under Section 304-B (dowry death) cannot be equated with a “murderer” as defined in Section 302 of the IPC, and therefore the disqualification under Section 25 of the Hindu Succession Act would not apply.
Justice Jamadar overruled this objection, emphasizing that the term “murder” in Section 25 should not be interpreted narrowly based on the IPC definition. The court observed:
“The disqualification incorporated in section 25 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, is based on public policy that a person who causes death of the person whose property he seeks to inherit, cannot be permitted to take advantage of his own felonious act”.
The judgment highlighted that the disqualification is premised on principles of justice, equity, and good conscience. It aims to prevent individuals from accelerating their inheritance by causing the death of the person whose property they seek to inherit.
Importantly, the court held that there is no significant qualitative difference between offenses under Section 302 (murder) and Section 304-B (dowry death) of the IPC in the context of inheritance disqualification. Justice Jamadar stated:
“A person who has caused the dowry death of a woman, falls within the dragnet of disqualification prescribed under section 25 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, if the said factum is proved to the satisfaction of the Civil Court”.
The court emphasized that the particular section of the IPC under which a person is convicted is not of decisive significance. What matters is whether the person caused or abetted the death of the individual whose property is in question.
Mr. Neeraj Patil represented the petitioner, while Mr. Anuj Desai served as Amicus Curiae, providing valuable assistance to the court in deciding the legal issues involved.
