EVOLUTION OF PROPERTY RIGHTS OF A HINDU FEMALE - AN ANALYSIS UNDER THE HINDU SUCCESSION ACT, 1956
Abstract
Society has placed unequal expectations on women, often limiting their financial autonomy and defining their roles within the family structure. Fortunately, societies around the world are evolving, recognizing the importance of gender equality and women's rights. Efforts are being made to empower women economically, socially, and legally. The Hindu Succession Act of 1956 enforces and protects the property rights of Hindu women in the community. The enacted act and amendments allowed both married and unmarried daughters to inherit their ancestral properties thereby allowing them to be absolute owners of any property they inherit or purchase, with the freedom to handle it as they wish. The Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 brought significant changes in the Act, which amended Section 6 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and recognized a Hindu girl as a coparcener as that of a son. The various court rulings clarified that the provisions of section 6 of the Act are retroactive, not merely prospective or retrospective. This retroactive nature signifies that a daughter's equal coparcenary rights are established from 9th September, 2005 based on her birth as a past event. This rectified the legal gap concerning the timing of events and clarified that a Hindu female will have a right over the ancestral property as a coparcener like her brother.
