The Delhi High Court has held that an unmarried or widowed daughter can assert her claim in her deceased father's estate, but this entitlement does not extend to a divorced daughter, as she is not considered a dependent entitled to maintenance.

The division bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna made this observation while dismissing an appeal filed by a divorced woman who was challenging a family court order that had previously rejected her claim for maintenance from her mother and brother.

The High court stated that the claim for maintenance had been made under Section 21 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act (HAMA), which outlines the criteria for dependents eligible to claim maintenance.

The court pointed out that the act specifies nine categories of relatives, and a divorced daughter is not included among them.

“An unmarried or widowed daughter is recognized to have a claim in the estate of the deceased, but a ‘divorced daughter’ does not feature in the category of dependents entitled to maintenance,” Court said.

The woman's father passed away in 1999, leaving behind four heirs: his wife, son, and two daughters. The woman claimed that she was not granted any share as a legal heir.

She argued that her mother and brother had agreed to provide her with a monthly maintenance of Rs 45,000 under the condition that she would not pursue her claim for a share in the property. She stated that she received maintenance payments consistently until November 2014, but not thereafter.

The woman said her husband deserted her and she was granted ex parte divorce in September 2001. She claimed the family court had not taken into consideration that she did not receive any money, alimony or maintenance from her husband.

She submitted since her husband was not traceable, she could not seek any alimony or maintenance from him.

The high court said in its order, “However difficult situation as it may be, but under the HAMA she is not a ‘dependent’ as defined under the Act and thus not entitled to claim maintenance from her mother and brother.”

The high court affirmed the family court's decision, noting that the woman had already received her share from her father's estate previously. Having received this share, she could not subsequently raise a new claim for maintenance from her brother and mother.

“The respondent no. 2/ mother has already made arrangements for providing the residence to the appellant (divorced daughter). It cannot be overlooked that the respondents being the brother and mother had also supported the daughter/appellant by voluntarily giving her Rs 45,000 per month to her till 2014,” the court said.

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