Law and order of succession to Stridhan:
Succession to a woman’s Stridhan varies according as she was married or unmarried according as she was married in an approved or in an unapproved form. It also varies according to the source from which the Stridhan came. The rules of descent are different in different schools, but there is no difference as to the property of a maiden.
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The following is the order of succession for the property of a maiden:
(1) Uterine brother, (2) mother, (3) father, (4) father’s heirs in order of propinquity, (5) kinsman of the deceased himself, i.e., her mother’s heirs in order of propinquity.
Succession to Stridhan according to the Mitakshara.
The Mitakshara divides Stridhan into two classes for purposes of successions.
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(i) Sulka, which is gratuity for which a girl is given in marriage.
(ii) Other kinds of Stridhan.
Devolution of the Sulka:
It devolves in the following order
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(1) Uterine brother, (2) mother, (3) father, (4) father’s heirs, i.e., sapindas, samanodakas and bandhus.
Devolution of other kinds of Stridhan (other than Sulka):
It passes in the following order:
(1) Unmarried daughter, (2) married daughter who is unprovided for, (3) married daughter who is provided for, (4) daughter’s daughter, (5) daughter’s son, (6) son, (7) son’s son.
If the widow dies without leaving any issue who was married in approved form, Stridhan goes to her husband and after him to the husband’s heirs in order of their succession to him. On failure of husband’s relation it goes to her blood relations in preference to the Government If she was married in an unapproved form it goes to her mother, then to the father and then to the father’s heirs, then to the husband’s heirs in preference to the Government.
Succession to Stridhan:
Dayabhaga School: For the purposes of succession the Stridhan is divided into four classes, namely:
(1) Sulka that is a present to induce the bride to go to her husband’s house.
(2) Yautaka, that is, gift made at the time of marriage.
(3) Anwadheyakar that is gifts and bequests from the father made after marriage.
(4) Ayautaka, that is, gifts and bequests from relations made before or-aftcr marriage.
Devolution of Sulka:
According to Dayabhaga Sulka passes in the following order:
(1) Whole brother, (2) mother, (3) father, (4) husband.
Succession of Yautaka:
Yautaka passes in the following order
(1) Unbelrothed daughters, (2) betrothed daughter, (3) married daughter with sons, (4) barren married daughters and childless widowed daughters, (5) son, (6) daughter’s son, (7) son’s son (8) son’s sons, (9) step-sons, (10) step-son’s sort, (11) step son’s son. If there be none and the marriage is performed in the approved from it passes as follows:
(1) Husband, (2) brother, (3) mother, (4) father.
If the marriage was in the approved form it passes in the following order:
(1) Mother, (2) father, (3) brother, (4) husband.
Succession to anwadheyaka from the father:
Property given by the father after marriage passes in the same order as Yautaka with this difference those sons before married daughters.
When the woman dies without leaving issues it passes in the following order:
(1) Brother, (2) mother, (3) father, (4) husband.
Succession to Ayautaka:
It passes in the following order
(1) Sons and maiden daughters taking together in equal shares.
(2) Married daughter’s who have, or are likely to have sons.
(3) Son’s son.
(4) Daughter’s son.
(5) Barren married daughters and childless widowed daughters.
If there be none of the above relations Ayautaka passes in the following order:
(1) Brother, (2) mother, (3) father, (4) husband (5) husband’s younger brother, (6) husband’s brother’s son, (7) sister’s son, (8) husband’s sister’s son, (9) brother’s son, (10) daughter’s husband, (11) husband’s Sapindas, Sakulyas and Samanodakas, (12) father’s kinsman.