Does the sharing of family pension between widows apply only where the second marriage was solemnised before the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 came into force?

Paragraph 14Further question arises, why such a rule has been incorporated in the Tamil Nadu Pension Rules. It is obvious that at the time of framing the Rules, the employees, who have solemnized second marriage prior to the year 1955, i.e., before the Hindu Marriage Act, was considered as a valid marriage. In those circumstances, when the second marriage was a valid marriage, the Rule contemplates sharing of the family pension. Therefore, only if the second marriage is valid under the Law, then alone, the pension is payable, which can be shared between two widows, but not otherwise. When the Pension Rule was enacted, there were many such cases, where, employees had two wives and the marriage with the second wife was solemnized prior to the Hindu Marriage Act before the year 1955 and thus, this Court is of the considered opinion that those circumstances cannot be taken undue advantage by the second wife, whose marriage was solemnized after the Hindu Marriage Act and became invalid. Thus, the second marriage solemnized during the lifetime of the first wife is an invalid marriage and an invalid marriage would not provide the second wife status as “widow”. When she is not holding the status as 'widow', the family pension is not payable and consequently, the family pension cannot be shared or paid.