Bangladesh Code
ACT NO. XV OF 1856
[25th July, 1856]
An Act to remove all legal obstacles to the marriage ofย Hindu Widows.
Preamble
WHEREAS it is known that, by the law as administered in theย Civil Courts 1[* * *], Hindu widows with certain exceptions areย held to be, by reason of their having been once married,ย incapable of contracting a second valid marriage, and theย offspring of such widows by any second marriage are held to beย illegitimate and incapable of inheriting property;
AND WHEREAS many Hindus believe that this imputed legalย incapacity, although it is in accordance with established custom,ย is not in accordance with a true interpretation of the precepts ofย their religion, and desire that the civil law administered by theย Courts of Justice shall no longer prevent those Hindus who mayย be so minded from adopting a different custom, in accordanceย with the dictates of their own conscience;
AND WHEREAS it is just to relieve all such Hindus from thisย legal incapacity of which they complain, and the removal of allย legal obstacles to the marriage of Hindu widows will tend to theย promotion of good morals and to the public welfare;
It is enacted as follows:โ
Marriage of the Hindu widows legalised :
1. No marriage contracted between Hindus shall be invalid, Marriage ofย Hindu widowsย and the issue of no such marriage shall be illegitimate, by reason legalizedย of the woman having been previously married or betrothed toย another person who was dead at the time of such marriage, anyย custom and any interpretation of Hindu law to the contraryย notwithstanding.
Rights ofย widow inย deceasedย husband’sย property toย cease on her remarriage :
2. All rights and interests which any widow may have inย her deceased husband’s property by way of maintenance, or byย inheritance to her husband or to his lineal successors, or byย virtue of any will or testamentary disposition conferring uponย her, without express permission to re-marry, only a limitedย interest in such property, with no power of alienating the same,ย shall upon her re-marriage cease and determine as if she hadย then died; and the next heirs of her deceased husband, or otherย persons entitled to the property on her death, shall thereuponย succeed to the same.
Guardianshipย of children ofย deceasedย husband on theย re-marriage ofย his widow :
3. On the re-marriage of a Hindu widow, if neither theย widow nor any other person has been expressly constituted byย the will or testamentary disposition of the deceased husband theย guardian of his children the father or paternal grandfather orย the mother or paternal grandmother, of the deceased husband,ย or any male relative of the deceased husband, may petition theย highest Court having original jurisdiction in civil cases in theย place where the deceased husband was domiciled at the time ofย his death for the appointment of some proper person to beย guardian of the said children, and thereupon it shall be lawfulย for the said Court, if it shall think fit, to appoint such guardian,ย who when appointed shall be entitled to have the care andย custody of the said children, or of any of them during theirย minority, in the place of their mother; and in making suchย appointment the Court shall be guided, so far as may be by theย laws and rules in force touching the guardianship of childrenย who have neither father nor mother:
Provided that, when the said children have not property ofย their own sufficient for their support and proper education whilstย minors, no such appointment shall be made otherwise than withย the consent of the mother unless the proposed guardian shallย have given security for the support and proper education of theย children whilst minors.
Nothing in thisย Act to renderย any childlessย widow capableย of inheriting :
4. Nothing in this Act contained shall be construed to renderย any widow who, at the time of the death of any person leavingย any property, is a childless widow, capable of inheriting theย whole or any share of such property, if before the passing of thisย Act, she would have been incapable of inheriting the same byย reason of her being childless widow.
Saving ofย rights ofย widowย marrying,ย except asย provided inย sections 2 to 4 :
5. Except as in the three preceding sections is provided, aย widow shall not, by reason of her re-marriage forfeit anyย property or any right to which she would otherwise be entitled;ย and every widow who has re-married shall have the same rightsย of inheritance as she would have had, had such marriage beenย her first marriage.
Ceremoniesย constitutingย valid marriageย to have sameย effect onย widow’sย marriage :
6. Whatever words spoken, ceremonies performed orย engagements made on the marriage of a Hindu female who hasย not been previously married, are sufficient to constitute a validย marriage, shall have the same effect if spoken, performed orย made on the marriage of a Hindu widow; and no marriage shallย be declared invalid on the ground that such words, ceremoniesย or engagements are inapplicable to the case of a widow.
Consent to re-marriage of minor widows :
7. If the widow re-marrying is a minor whose marriage has Consent to remarriage ofย not been consummated, she shall not re-marry without the minor widowย consent of her father, or if she has no father, of her paternalย grandfather, or if she has no such grandfather, of her mother, or,ย failing all these, of her elder brother, or failing also brothers, ofย her next male relative.
All persons knowingly abetting a marriage made contrary toย the provisions of this section shall be liable to imprisonment forย any term not exceeding one year or to fine or to both.
Punishment forย abettingย marriage madeย contrary to thisย section :
And all marriages made contrary to the provisions of this Effect of suchย marriageย section may be declared void by a Court of law; Provided, thatย in any question regarding the validity of a marriage madeย contrary to the provisions of this section, such consent as isย aforesaid shall be presumed until the contrary is proved, and thatย no such marriage shall be declared void after it has beenย consummated.
Consent to re-marriage of major widows :
In the case of a widow who is of full age, or whose marriage Consent to remarriage ofย has been consummated, her own consent shall be sufficient major widowย consent to constitute her re-marriage lawful and valid.
1ย The words โestablished in the territories in the possession and under the
Government of East India Companyโ were omitted by section 3 and 2nd Schedule of the
Bangladesh Laws (Revision and Declaration) Act, 1973 (Act No. VIII of 1973).
