NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India has rejected a petition filed by former actress Anita Advani seeking legal recognition of her relationship with late Bollywood superstar Rajesh Khanna as a marriage and recognition of her status as his widow.
Supreme Court Rejects Anita Advani’s Widow Claim
A bench comprising Justices M.M. Sundresh and Prasanna B. Varale declined to entertain the plea, finding no valid legal grounds to proceed with the petition. The bench reportedly described the litigation as “luxury litigation.”
Advani approached the Supreme Court after the Bombay High Court upheld the dismissal of her original civil suit. She had sought a declaration that her long-term live-in relationship with Khanna amounted to a marriage-like union, entitling her to be legally recognised as his widow.
On April 1, a single-judge bench of the Bombay High Court, headed by Justice Sharmila U. Deshmukh, rejected her claim, observing that Khanna’s marriage to veteran actress Dimple Kapadia was legally valid and subsisting at the time.
High Court Explains Legal Position
The High Court observed that a live-in relationship can be treated as a relationship in the nature of marriage only when certain legal conditions are fulfilled. One of the key requirements is that both individuals must be legally eligible to marry.
Since Khanna’s marriage to Dimple Kapadia had not been legally dissolved, the court found that Advani’s claim did not meet the necessary legal criteria.
Advani had argued that she lived with Khanna for several years, shared a household with him and celebrated festivals together. However, the High Court rejected her contention that recognition of their relationship could be considered separately from her claim to be declared his widow.
The court consequently upheld the trial court’s decision to reject her suit under Order 7, Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC).
Legal Battle Dating Back to 2015
The dispute dates back to 2015, when Advani filed a civil suit against Dimple Kapadia, their daughters Twinkle Khanna and Rinke Khanna, and son-in-law Rajiv Bhatia, seeking legal recognition of her relationship with the late actor.
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The Supreme Court’s latest decision marks another setback for Advani in her prolonged legal battle over her claimed relationship with the Bollywood icon.
