108-YO Woman Reclaims Property From Son To Distribute It Among 3 Widowed Daughters

This inspiring story is about the grit, determination, and persistence of a 108-year-old grandmother, Krishnaveniammal from Siruvandhadu village in Villupuram, Tamil Nadu. She shattered the gender stereotypes in the most inspiring way.

108-Year-Old Krishnaveniammal: A Role Model

Based on the family property rights in the state, the male member of the family by default inherit ancestral land. But Krishnaveniammal stood for her daughters as she retrieved the property rights from her son and redistributed it equally among her three daughters and her grandson.

With her three widowed daughters, Krishnaveniammal lives in a 900-square-foot house with a thatched roof. This house, which was built in 1944, is priced at approximately Rs 20 lakh, and the land is worth Rs 6 crore. The whole property was inherited by her son Ganesan, who is a government official, who doesn’t take care of his mother.

The family was living under the constant fear of Ganesan abandoning his mother and sisters by selling the property.

Soon the matter reached to District Superintendent of Police, S Radhakrishnan. The inspiring Radhakrishnan is famous for addressing senior citizens’ grievances within 3 days.

And, with the support of the District Superintendent of Police, the grandmother decided to take the legal route to stand up for the equal rights of her daughters.

As per the sources, the grandmother explained to the police officer about her situation.

“I am very old and may pass away soon. Right now, my son owns the property but I want to share it among my daughters, too. I requested my son to agree on sharing the inheritance, but he refused,”

She further adds:

“Before I die, I want to see my property split among my daughters.”

While sharing the details, the police official, Radhakrishnan, mentioned:

“I was surprised to know that such an elderly woman had knocked on the doors of the police. I immediately rushed downstairs from my office to see her address the issue,”

He further shared how the son, Ganesan, was depriving his own family of “basic necessities like groceries”.

“Krishnaveniammal also has a sentimental value for the house as she wishes to breathe her last in her ancestral home,” the police officer shares.

While sharing the solution to the problem, the police officer mentioned:

“There are provisions under the Senior Citizenship Act where the property can be reclaimed through mutual consent. The provisions under the act mention that if the children are not taking care of their parents, the property can be retrieved.”

Standing for herself & her daughters

As the ownership rights of the property were given to Ganesan in good faith, the police officer immediately called Ganesan and convinced him to give up sole ownership of the property and share it with his sisters.

And, after convincing him to return the documents, a fresh set of papers was drafted. As per the new papers, the property has been equally divided among the four siblings.

At IFORHER, we are in awe of this inspiring 108-year-old grandmother, who stood for herself and her daughters. We hope many would seek inspiration from her and shatter the regressive gender stereotypes!