Lahore High Court Orders Inheritance Share for Widow After 27 Years

Lahore: The Lahore High Court has issued a landmark ruling in favor of a widow, Sadiqan Bibi, granting her rightful inheritance share from her brother after 27 years. The court’s decision comes after a lengthy legal battle in which the widow sought her share of her late father’s property, which had been withheld by her brother.

In its 12-page written judgment, the court annulled the decision of the trial court, stating that the widow should not be deprived of her lawful inheritance rights. The court noted that, in many families, false claims are often made regarding property, and the best way to prove such claims is by stating that the property was orally gifted.

The Lahore High Court further remarked that the woman’s brother, instead of helping his widowed sister during her difficult times, tried to deny her inheritance. The court expressed regret that some men, in violation of Sharia law, rob women of their inheritance rights. The judgment emphasized the need for full protection of women’s inheritance rights.

The court also stated that if a woman voluntarily relinquishes her inheritance rights, the claim must be proven through proper legal procedures.

According to the widow, after her father’s death, her brother had assured her of a share in the inheritance and, for some time, even sent her a portion of the income from the land. However, after the death of her husband, the brother refused to give her any part of the property.

In 2011, Sadiqan Bibi filed a claim in the trial court for her inheritance rights, where her brother argued that their father had already gifted 59 kanals of land to him during his lifetime. However, the trial court dismissed her claim in 2014.

The widow then appealed the trial court’s decision to the Lahore High Court, which ruled in her favor, annulled the previous judgment, and ordered that she be given her rightful share in the inheritance.