Hello all learned lawyers.
Sorry for my lengthy question. This is my first post on this forum.
I am a widow and recently retired from state government service and leaving in Sangali, Maharashtra
Brief History
We are Hindu. My Father in law partitioned his self acquired agricultural land near Sangli and 4 residential buildings in Sangli amongst his 2 sons, 2 daughters (20% of farmland and one residential building each) and his wife ((20% of farmland) and kept nothing for himself by way of unregistered family partition deed in year 1985. Everyone got their name mutated in the land record. I am widow of eldest son.
My father and mother-in-law stayed will me and my husband till death. My husband got the farmland on his name but not the house thinking that he will do it after his father’s death. Father-in-law died in 2009.
My husband died in 2010 four months after retirement . I have one daughter and one son who are twins age 26. Husband was in Govt. service so I am getting family pension starting from Nov 2011.
I got the land record of our farmland mutated in the name of myself and my two children in 2011.
Mother-in-law died in 2012 and we sold her land out of which my family got 25% share. I divided that 25% equally among myself and my children (deposited in individual bank accounts).
As our house was still in my father-in-law’s name, my husband’s brother and sisters happily agreed to respect the unregistered partition deed and relinquished their share in the house. We all agreed to transfer our share in house in my son’s name b way of registered relinquishment deed. Property record shows my son’s name since January 2013.
Life was happy till now. Our farmland which was situated in a village 25 km away from Sangali was acquired by government for a project at price which is actually better than market price. We happily signed the agreement with Land acquisition office along with rest of the villagers. We were shocked when the notice for payment showed that our house maid objected on payment of land on pretext of my late husband’s second wife. So the case is now referred to court for settlement of dispute.
Turned out that the women is sister of my late husband’s school friend Ashok who later-on became my husband’s enemy after a fist-fight between them in 2009. Shanta’s husband deserted her immediately after birth of her only son and since then she is working as house maid. She worked as house maid at my husband’s rented place for 10 years where he was posted before retirement. The situation was odd but me and my father-in-law did not object by looking at financial hardship of Shanta and her kid and her brother being childhood friend of my husband.
Now Shanta and her brother is claiming that she secretly married to my late husband in temple 10 years ago and have a genuine WILL of my husband showing 80% land in her name and half of the family pension. Ashok and his sister trying to take revenge on us by harassing us with threats of long court case. Ashok offered for out of court settlement at 50% of the value of farmland in cash.
Questions
1) What is the chance that court will consider her claim as valid?
2) The photocopy of WILL shown to us is printed and just bears an apparently fake sign of my husband. the 2 witnesses who signed are unknown to anyone in our family. Can we file a forgery FIR and/or case? Kishor is threatening to go for Probate of WILL
3) Even if the WILL is genuine, can my husband give away 80% of land which he got in partition from his father when father was alive?
