“Women are the real architects of society”
During Indus Valley Civilization Indian society held noble and respectful view about women to worship them as goddesses by saying yatra naryastu pujyante ramante tatra Devata, yatraitaastu na pujyante sarvaastatrafalaah kriyaah a famous shloka which means where women are honored, dignity blossoms there, and where women are dishonored, all actions remain unfruitful. Women were considered as custodians of their culture and sensible beings. But in primitive ages, there were various tribes based on a matriarchal system where deceased men’s property goes in hands of his wife, mother, or daughter and at that time she was given more priority. Back then in the ancient era, patriarchal societies occupied the space i.e., father began to dominate all the affairs of the family whether economic or social.
In Hindu tradition, husband and wife considered to bee the joint owners of the home and property. The husband has to take a vow on the auspicious day of marriage that he’ll never violate the economic rights and interest of his wife. But this vow never took logical conclusion and kept wives at a minor advantageous position. Women are considered as perpetual minors and have to lead a life in the guardianship of father, husband, or son. As it rightly said that when men are oppressed is a tragedy, when women are oppressed by its tradition. But soon this tradition started changing as the society progressed and the position of women changed based on different customs which property rights have recognized and protected.
Several Acts were passed in the colonial period like women’s right to property act, 1856, Hindu law of inheritance Act, 1928. The development of women regarding property rights was seen when women’s rights to property act, 1937 was passed. Such laws started changing the lives of Hindu women. After independence, several women’s movements took place like the Telangana movement, the Bodhgaya Math movement(1978), the Chipko movement, etc. Which Bodhgaya movement was first considered as land rights movement, specifically dealt with property a right. And as there is a saying that a woman is a teabag, you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water. So, women, there were the active participants who demanded access to land rights.
The post-independence era is the time when laws in fact whole Indian legal system started taking shape. Preamble which is the soul of our constitution recognized equality based on socio, economic and political order. Gender equality emerging as the main formula for a healthy and prosperous society. Gender equality not only liberates females but also men from prescribed gender stereotypes. Thus the Indian constitution guaranteed equal rights for men and women under Article 14, 15, 15(3),16 and 21. Other legislation such as women’s legal rights 1952, Intestate Succession Act, 1956, etc. emerged. Chapter IV of the Constitution of India defined Directive Principles of state policy where Article 38 defines that state should secure a social order for the promotion of the welfare of people. And the objective of the welfare state will be achieved when a quote by Hillary Clinton i.e., when women participate in the economy, everyone benefits becomes true.
Succession means the right and transmission of rights and obligation of deceased to his heirs and Hindu Succession Act, 1956 was the first to provide a comprehensive and uniform system of inheritance among Hindus and to address gender inequalities in the area of inheritance. But some flaws existed in the above act like in Pravat Chandra Pattnaik and others v. Sarat Chandra Pattnaik and another, Hon’ble High Court held that daughter also possess equal rights and liabilities in Hindu coparcenary property as sons have and amended Act of 2005 was enacted to remove inequality contained in section 6 of Hindu Succession Act,1956. Apart from section 6, sections 4,23,24 and 30 of Hindu Succession Act, 1956 were also amended and a new Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act,2005 cane into existence.
Section 14 gives the full ownership of the property to the women as it states that any property possessed by a female Hindu, whether acquired before or after the commencement of this Act, shall be held by her as a full owner thereof and not a limited owner. i.e., it will be her stridhan.
There are certain cases where we can observe gender equality in the areas of inheritance for instance:
- Mary Roy v. State of Kerala, where she filed a case against her elder brother after her father’s death but was denied an equal share in the family’s inheritance. Then in 1986, the Supreme court gave a landmark judgment that granted the right to seek an equal share.
- The Supreme court of India in Danamma Surpur v. Amar and Others held that daughters were entitled to benefit of the 2005 amendment that interest of deceased coparcenary property devolves by intestate succession on his heirs, which included his daughters. And was settled in Prakash v. Phulavati rights under the amendment are available to daughter living on the date of the amendment, irrespective of when they were born.
However, there are still many problems to grant equal property rights to women as sections 8 and 9 of the Act states the rules regarding succession in the case of males while sections 15 and 16 dealwithrules of succession in the case of females. In order of succession of women’s death her husband’s heir gets the preference than her parents.
Thus, it is the need of the hour to form a uniform civil code to achieve the objective of equality based on gender. Its time for us to change our view towards women. We have to understand that gender equality is a human fight, not a woman fight. We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back. It is not clear that the amendment in the Hindu Succession Act provided full gender equality or not. Campaign on legal literacy, enhancement of social awareness to the whole family regarding the issues where women own property, awareness related to the rights and liabilities to women are some of the steps which are needed to fulfill the change incorporated in the Act.
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