The Delhi High Court has clarified that a Hindu woman’s marriage to a Muslim man does not automatically result in her conversion to Islam. This statement was made while hearing a long-pending partition suit that involved the division of ancestral property within a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF). The case involved a dispute over the rightful share of the plaintiff daughters in properties held by their deceased father.
Justice Jasmeet Singh, who was presiding over the matter, observed that the defendants in the case failed to provide any substantial evidence to back their claim that the eldest plaintiff had converted to Islam after her marriage to a Muslim man of Pakistani origin. The dispute arose when the defendants, the plaintiff’s brothers from her father’s second marriage, attempted to sell certain properties without the consent of the daughters. They contended that the eldest daughter’s rights in the HUF had been nullified due to her marriage to a Muslim man.
The Court categorically stated: “To my mind, merely marrying a Muslim does not result in an automatic conversion from Hinduism to Islam. In the present case, aside from a bare averment made by the defendants, no substantive evidence has been produced by the defendants to prove that the plaintiff no. 1 underwent a recognized process of conversion to Islam.”
The Court highlighted that the plaintiff, in her affidavit, had explicitly stated that despite her marriage, she continued to practice Hinduism. In light of the lack of concrete proof regarding her conversion, the Court ruled that she retained her status as a Hindu and was thus entitled to her share in the HUF properties.
The Court partially allowed the suit and granted the daughters one-fourth share each in the amounts credited to the HUF's PPF account. Additionally, the Court ruled that the daughters were entitled to two properties, based on an affidavit by the defendant sons who had voluntarily renounced their rights to these properties in favor of the plaintiffs as a gesture of goodwill.
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