Case study 1:
With the introduction of the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Bill, 2004 in Parliament on
December 20th 2004, the Government has gone a step further in fulfilling is commitment
towards gender equality made in National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP). The Bill
to amend the Hindu Succession Act of 1956 gives women equal rights in the inheritance of
ancestral wealth, something reserved only for male heirs earlier
It, indeed, is a significant step in bringing the Hindu Law of Inheritance in accord with the
constitutional principle of equality. The enactment of the proposed legislation would also
implement the recommendations of the National Commission for Women (NCW)
substantially to help bring social change in society. The Bill seeks to remove the discrimination
as contained in Section 6 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 by giving equal rights to daughters
in the Hindu Mitakshara coparcenary property as the sons have, In what is known as the Kerala
model, the ions concept of co – parcenary was abolished and according to the Kerala Joint
Family System (Abolition) Act, 1975, the heirs (male and female) do not acquire property by
Birth but only hold it as tenants as if a partition has taken place. Andhra Pradesh (1986), Tamil
Nadu (1989), Karnataka (1994) and Maharashtra (1994) also enacted laws, where daughters
were granted ‘co-parcener’ rights or a claim on ancestral property by birth as the sons. Equality
for women not just a matter of equity for the so called weaker ***, but a measure of the
modernity of Indian society and the pragmatic nature of our civilisation. On the basis of above
case, answer of the following questions.
1. The above case makes a reference to Mitakshara system. What is meant by it?
2. Is Mitakshara the only system governing co – parcenary property?
Posted by Asra Patel
3 years ago
