SC ruling in favour of women's equal property rights will help in their empowerment: activists

Women's rights activists on Tuesday welcomed the apex court ruling in favour of equal coparcenary rights for daughters in joint Hindu family property, saying it will help in ensuring their mental and economic empowerment.

Women's rights activists on Tuesday welcomed the apex court ruling in favour of equal coparcenary rights for daughters in joint Hindu family property, saying it will help in ensuring their mental and economic empowerment. Holding that daughters cannot be deprived of their right of equality, the Supreme Court Tuesday ruled that they will have equal coparcenary rights in joint Hindu family property even if the father died before the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005.

The verdict makes it clear the amendment to the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 granting equal rights to daughters to inherit ancestral property would have retrospective effect. Women's rights activists welcomed the decision and said it will help in the economic empowerment of women.

Yogita Bhayana, an activist who heads the People Against Rape in India (PARI), said the government and society both need to work together to ensure women's equality and awareness needs to be spread for the same. "We have been fighting for it from so many years. It is a very good judgement. The government must make some compulsions and compliances then only society will follow it. The government and society both need to work together in this and for that awareness needs to be spread. It will give women mental and economic empowerment," Bhayana said. Social activist Shabnam Hashmi said the judgement will benefit women. "It is a good judgement. It is a pity that courts have to give these judgements. We as a society should be giving equal property rights to daughters irrespective of whichever religion they belong to. It is a welcome judgement," she said.

Women's rights activist Shamina Shafiq called the judgement "wonderful", saying women endure a lot of violence because they are deprived of their property rights. "Finally the court is also waking up to the concept of equality because a lot of violence is faced by women because of involvement of properties," she said. "If a woman does not have any wealth then generally she is not respected or regarded as someone worthy in the family. The moment women have some kind of land, property rights then they automatically start gaining that respect within the family. So it is important to ensure that women are not deprived of their property rights. It is a welcome move," the former National Commission for Women member added.

She also said it is unfortunate that the society has still not woken up to the call for gender equality. "Unfortunately the society doesn't seem to be waking up to the call of equality not just nationally but internationally. It is a global phenomenon and the society seems to be mum because it is the share of men that will go to women, that is how they perceive it," Shafiq said.

Chhavi Methi, an activists and member of the Bharatiya Samajik Jagritik Sanghatan, welcomed the judgement but said it might lead to more conflicts within families. "The society needs to accept the decision," she said.