As we all know, being a Muslim country and according to the mandate of Article 227 of the Constitution of Pakistan, the law of inheritance in Pakistan is governed by Islamic beliefs or schools of thought i.e. Sunni or Shia. It is also an established principle of Islam that inheritance in Islam can only be open after the death of the deceased. Therefore, for the enforcement of the Inheritance law, we/you should be very clear about the religious belief or sect of the deceased. Moreover, as the result of interpretations by the superior Courts of Pakistan, it has been laid down that the operation of limitation shall not run for the enforcement of Inheritance law meaning thereby, one can claim his/her right of inheritance at any time even after fifty years (50) of the death of deceased.
We will only discuss the useful and speedy methods for women regarding the enforcement of their Inheritance Rights in Pakistan according to new enactments/ Laws. As in many cases, it has been seen that due to the patriarchies approach in sub-continental society, sisters, mothers and daughters are deprived and sometimes are forced to surrender their inheritance rights due to a lack of trust over the judicial system and lengthy or endless civil procedure prevailed in our courts, the women left with no other option than to surrender and silence. Therefore, by keeping in view the difficulties faced by the women, the new legislations i.e. amendments in Pakistan Penal Code and new enactments made by the worthy legislatures are in fields to protect the woman rights from un-Islamic deprivations regarding inheritance or property rights.
Enforcement of Women Rights Act, 2019
According to the mandate of the Woman Rights Act, if a female is deprived of her lawful share in the property or inheritance left by the deceased, she can file a formal Complaint before the Ombudsmen and thereafter, the honorable Ombudsman shall conduct a formal inquiry and in this regard, Ombudsman can also seek a detailed report from Deputy Commissioner.
After the inquiry report, if the Ombudsman is satisfied that a female is genuinely being deprived of her lawful share then the honorable Ombudsman has the power to direct any executive authority including Station House Officers and Deputy Commissioner to utilize Government machinery to enforce the orders of Ombudsman regarding the female rights of inheritance.
And if after the inquiry report, the honorable Ombudsman believes that the matter needs a detailed examination of facts i.e. Gifts, Will and legitimacy of females, then the matter would be referred to the Civil Court.
Section 498-A of Pakistan Penal Code
Pakistan Penal Code (S. 498-A) further strengthened the enforcement of the law by penalizing those who deny inheritance to women. It says that the denial of inheritance through illegal or deceitful means shall be punishable with imprisonment for up to 10 years, with minimum 5 years and fine of one million rupees.
Conclusions
To conclude, it can safely be stated that regardless of previous approach of legislatures towards to woman rights in Pakistan, new developments as stated above are very useful for protection of women Rights in Pakistan.