The Protective Gaze

The Court has given progressive judgments on women’s property rights. While some ensured equal rights to daughters even when the father had died, others saw to it that married women were not left in the lurch due to desertion

- Saju Jakob

A girl child is usually considered a liability in India. Called “paraya dhan”, which translates to “wealth that belongs to another”, she is often in a dilemma between her paternal and matrimonial homes. In addition, her property rights have always been a grey area.

However, in 2020, the Supreme Court delivered two landmark judgments to ensure the rights of women from birth to death and to make them non-dependent on any male or female relative. While Vineeta Sharma vs Rakesh Sharma clarifies all the discrepancies related to the rights of the daughter in her paternal property, irrespective of her marital status, Rajnesh vs Neha ensures the safety of shelter and life if she is deserted by her matrimonial home. The special laws for women owe their roots to Article 15(3) and Article 39 of the Constitution.

The Hindu Succession Amendment Act, 2005, granted equal coparcenary rights in a Mitakshara coparcenary to the daughter in the same manner that a son would inherit by birth. However, the execution of such litigation led to various disputes which the Supreme Court attempted to settle in the Vineeta Sharma case.