Daughters must be given equal rights as sons, says Supreme Court

In a significant judgement, the Supreme Court on August 11 ruled that daughters will have equal rights in the parental property as son even if their father died before the Hindu Succession (amendment) Act 2005 came into force.

The bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra was answering a reference based on conflicting decision given by past verdicts of the top court. “Daughters must be given equal rights as sons. Daughter remains a loving daughter throughout life. The daughter shall remain a coparcener throughout life, irrespective of whether her father is alive or not,” Justice Mishra said.

A coparcener is the one who shares equally in the inheritance of an undivided property.
The Hindu Succession Act, which was amended in 2005, gives daughters equal rights in their ancestral assets.

The judgment holds significance as the SC held that rights under the amendment are applicable to living daughters.

The apex court’s clarification is significant since it set aside a clutch of previous decisions by the top court that she would have the coparcenary right only if both the father and the daughter were alive as on September 9, 2005 when the amendment was notified to the Hindu Succession Act.