Housewife entitled to half of husband’s property: Madras High Court
Chennai (IANS) | The Madras High Court has held that a housewife is entitled to half of her husband’s property. A single-judge bench of Justice Krishnan Ramaswamy observed that a housewife works round-the-clock without any break from her daily routine to run a household. The judge said that the woman taking care of the home also acts as a home doctor by providing basic medical assistance to the family members.
He further said that a woman would be entitled to an equal share in the properties bought by her husband from his earnings.
The court said that the husband would not have been able to earn money without the support of his wife to take care of the family. The court said, the property may have been purchased in the name of the husband or wife, yet it should be deemed to have been purchased from the money saved by the joint efforts of both the husband and the wife.
After devoting herself to the care of her husband and children, a woman cannot be left without anything to call her own.
The court said that even though no law has so far been enacted to recognize the contribution made by the homemaker, the courts may well recognize the contribution, and ensure that when women are rewarded for their sacrifice, When it comes to that, they should get proper justice.
The court made the observation while disposing of Kannian’s second appeal in 2016 against his estranged wife, whom he had married in 1965.
The couple had two sons and a daughter. The person worked in Saudi Arabia between 1983 and 1994.
After reaching India, he lodged a complaint that his wife was encroaching on properties bought with his earnings, and also alleged that the woman was having an extra-marital affair.
After the death of the woman, her children fought a case against their mother, Kansala Ammal. The elderly woman had sought a share in her husband’s property.
In 2015, a local court rejected Ammal’s claim of equal share in three of the five properties and assets.
However, a single bench judge of the Madras High Court held that even though the disputed property was acquired by her husband from his own savings, Ammal was entitled to a 50 per cent share.
–IANS
