Page:Castes and Tribes of Southern India, Volume 4.djvu/327

Rh Indian Law Reports,* that "there is an immemorial custom by which Lingāit widows are remarried. Such marriage is styled, not kaliānam, but odaveli or kudaveli. It is not accompanied with the same ceremonies as a kaliānam marriage, but a feast is given, the bride and bridegroom sit on a mat in the presence of the guests and chew betel, their cloths are tied together, and the marriage is consummated the same night. Widows married in this form are freely admitted into society. They cease to belong to the family of their first husband, and the children of the second family inherit the property of their own father." Divorce is permitted on proof of misconduct. The husband can exercise his right to divorce his wife by proving before a panchayet the alleged misconduct. The wife can only claim to divorce her husband when he has been outcasted. Wives who have been divorced cannot remarry. The above answers are given on the authority of the Ujjini mutt. There appears to be considerable divergence of opinion in other quarters. By some it is positively asserted that divorce is not permitted under any circumstances; that the husband and wife may separate on the ground of incompatibility of temper or for misconduct; and that in these circumstances the husband is at liberty to marry again, while the wife is not. Others say that divorce is permitted, and that both parties are at liberty to remarry. In connection with the Lingāyats of South Canara, it is recorded, in the Indian Law Reports, † that "second marriage of a wife forsaken by the first husband is allowed. Such marriage is known as sērai ūdiki (giving a cloth); as distinguished from lagna or dhara, the first marriage."