Bare Act
The Bombay Hindu Heirs Relief Act, 1866
General186610 sections
The Bombay Hindu Heirs' Relief Act, 1866, is a historical piece of legislation designed to protect the heirs of a deceased Hindu from being unfairly burdened by ancestral debts. Before this Act, legal interpretations regarding liability for ancestral debts varied across the Bombay Presidency. This law established a uniform rule: a son, grandson, or heir is not personally liable for the debts of a deceased ancestor simply by virtue of their relationship. Instead, their liability is strictly limited to the value of the assets they inherited. It also protects husbands of Hindu widows from inheriting the debts of their wives' former husbands.
- 0. Preamble
- 1. Hindu son or grandson not liable as such for debt of ancestor
- 2. Heir to be liable as representative of deceased ancestor only to extent of asset received
- 3. Pending suits
- 4. Act XII of 1873.
- 5. Liability of member of undivided Hindu family for family debts contracted during his minority
- 6. Saving of liability of surviving member of undivided Hindu family
- 7. Interpretation
- 8. Commencement of Act
- 9. Act XII of 1873.
PDF: pending for this language.