Status of converted Christian in his Ancestral property.
A Hindu
Undivided Family (HUF) is governed by the Hindu Succession Act and according to
the law, Hindus who may have converted to any other religion can still lay
claim on their ancestral property.
Earlier, if a legal heir converted into another religion, it could mean
forfeiture and exclusion from the family property. However, under the provisions
of the Caste Disabilities Removal Act, 1850, as stated in the E Ramesh and Anr.
versus P Rajini and 2 Others case, things have changed. Now, a Hindu convert
will not lose right over father’s property even after renouncing his religion.
However, according to Section 26 of the Hindu Succession Act, a convert’s
child/children will be disqualified from inheriting the property of their Hindu
relatives unless they are Hindus at the time.
The
Bombay High Court in its recent decision in Balchand Jairamdas
Lalwant v. Nazneen Khalid Qureshi (Appeal from Order No. 1175 of 2014) dated
6th March, 2018 whilst discussing the issue on whether a Hindu who has
converted to Islam is disqualified to receive property of the father who dies
intestate has held that when deciding the inheritance, the religion of the
person at the time of birth has to be taken into account and therefore, a Hindu
convert is entitled to her father's property on the father dying intestate.
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