Foreign divorce decrees must be recognized; no bar to legal heir certificate issuance.

ORDER

This petition has been filed challenging the impugned proceedings of the

2^nd respondent and seeking a direction to the 2nd respondent to grant a legal heirship certificate for the petitioner’s late husband, based on the available documents submitted.

2.The case of the petitioner is that she is the legally wedded wife of late Sivadas Narayanan, having married him on 01.02.2021 in California, USA. Both the petitioner and her deceased husband were divorcees from their respective previous marriages, which were legally dissolved by competent courts in the USA (vide decrees dated 24.06.2015 and 21.03.2000 respectively. While so, the petitioner’s husband passed away on 17.04.2025 due to cardiac arrest in California. In order to manage her late husband’s financial and legal affairs, the petitioner applied for a legal heir certificate on 22.09.2025. Despite furnishing all the requisite documents, including the divorce decrees pertaining to the previous marriages, the 2^nd respondent rejected the application on 09.02.2026 on the ground that the deceased had two wives. Aggrieved by the same, the present writ petition has been filed.

3.The learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that both the petitioner and her deceased husband had obtained divorces from the competent courts in the USA (vide decrees dated 24.06.2015 and 21.03.2000 respectively). Hence, there is no legal impediment for the 2^nd respondent to issue a legal heir certificate to the petitioner. Therefore, the learned counsel prays that this Court may issue a direction to the 2^nd respondent to grant a legal heir certificate strictly in terms of G.O Ms.No.478 dated 29.09.2022. Accordingly, he prayed for appropriate orders.

4.The learned Special Government Pleader appearing for the respondents

1 and 2 fairly submitted that the second respondent rejected the petitioner’s application on the ground that the deceased had two wives. In the light of the divorce decrees obtained by the petitioner and the deceased from competent courts in the USA, the second respondent ought to have considered the same and granted the legal heir certificate. Accordingly, she submitted that this Court may set aside the impugned order, remand the matter back to the second respondent, and direct the second respondent to issue the legal heir certificate, if the petitioner is otherwise eligible.

5.In view of the above submissions, the second respondent is directed to peruse the entire set of documents produced by the petitioner within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order and to issue the Legal Heirship Certificate within a period of three weeks thereafter.

6.With the above directions, this Writ Petition stands disposed of. There shall be no order as to costs. Consequently, the connected miscellaneous petition is closed.