Lucknow bench of Allahabad HC stays eviction of widowed daughter-in-law

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has quashed an order of the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), Lucknow (Sadar), directing eviction of a widowed daughter-in-law from her in-laws' house on the basis of summary proceedings under the Senior Citizens Act.

A single judge bench of Justice Vivek Chaudhary said, "In the given facts and circumstances of the case, the impugned order dated July 14 cannot stand and is set aside."

The court said, "Respondents (in-laws) are directed to hand over the possession of the ground floor of the House No. 3/347, Vishal Khand, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow to the petitioner (daughter in-law) and her son forthwith."

The court further stated, "Petitioner shall not in any manner interfere with the ingress and egress of the occupants of the floors above the ground floor. Private respondents (in-laws) also shall not disturb or interfere in any manner with the living of the petitioner and her son in the said property."

The court observed that a wife cannot be evicted from her matrimonial house on the basis of the summary proceedings under the Senior Citizens Act, 2007.

One Khushboo Shukla had filed a petition in the high court challenging the July 14 order of the SDM (Sadar), Lucknow.

In his order, the SDM had ordered Khushboo Shukla to vacate the house of her in-laws in Gomti Nagar. The SDM had passed the order on a petition filed by Shukla's father-in-law.

In her petition, Khushboo Shukla had alleged that after the death of her husband Gaurav Shukla on July 15, 2019, her in-laws started harassing her. She also told the court that after the SDM's order, she and her child would be rendered homeless.