Q. A man was killed in a road accident leaving behind his 35-year-old-wife and two daughters aged 15 and 12, one brother and three sisters. Sometime later, the widow received a sum of money that included his final salary, certain benefits, and compensation. When the deceased’s brother and sisters heard of this, they demanded that the two girls should be handed over to them together with the money, saying that they are the ones who deserve it, and that they will look after the girls. The deceased also owned a house inherited from his parents. Could you please explain who has a claim to a portion of the money and in what shares.
Ashy, Al-Kharj
A. What is amazing in this story is that the girls’ uncle and their aunts did not ask them to join their families earlier. Now they feel that it is their responsibility to look after them. Why is it that an orphan girl with inheritance is welcome at her uncle’s, but not the one without such inheritance? It should be always remembered that the basic rule that applies in such situations, and in many others, is that “gain is commensurate with liability.”
Having said that, I should explain that custody of young children belongs to their mother, unless she gets married or forfeits her right in some other way. In this case custody is transferred to the children’s maternal grandmother. Next in line is their paternal grandmother. Such custody is always given to a woman, choosing the closest available, with preference for the mother’s side. For boys, custody continues until the child is able to look after himself in matters of food, clothes and cleanliness. For girls, it continues further, with different views voiced by different scholars and schools of Fiqh. Some extend it until the girl gets married. Others who give a lesser age also give the child the right to choose between his parents, making it clear that the choice can be changed at any time. The two girls in this case are able to make their choice and if they choose their mother, their uncle and aunts will have no claim to them.
The money received by the widow, including compensation, or blood money, and salaries and benefits, should be added to the rest of his estate, such as the family home and the rest of his belonging and divided among his heirs in accordance with the Islamic law of inheritance. Since the deceased man’s parents are not alive, his heirs are his wife, two daughters, brother and three sisters. Each has a different share as follows: One eighth for his widow, two-thirds for the two girls to be divided equally between them, and the remainder goes to his brother and sisters, dividing it between them so as to give his brother a share equal to that of two sisters. Thus, the entire estate, including the sum received by the widow, should be divided into 24 shares, with three shares going to the widow, eight shares to each of the man’s two daughters, and two shares to his brother and one share to each of his three sisters.
