Women Can Be 'Karta' Of House: Why Delhi HC Ruling Reinstates A Fact

The Delhi High Court has ruled that women can be the Karta of the Hindu Undivided Family. It said that neither the law nor the tradition prohibits a woman from managing or being the head of a family. It further said that "societal perceptions" cannot be the reason behind snatching away the rights bestowed upon women by law. 

Citing the 2005 amendment of the Hindu Succession Act that allowed men and women equal rights in property, the court said, "To say that a woman can be a coparcener but not a Karta, would be giving an interpretation which would not only be anomalous but also against the stated object of introduction of amendment."

"Men and women were born equal"

The bench of justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna ruled this judgement while dealing with the case of a woman named Sujata. The court declared Sujata, a granddaughter of the patriarch of the family, as the karta of the family as all the sons of the patriarch had died. When the grandsons objected, the court rejected all the hypotheses that considered it incorrect for a woman to be the head of the family. The bench observed that men and women were historically born equal. 

However, the court also mentioned that over a period of time, women have been relegated to secondary positions due to gender roles advanced with the advancement of civilisation and hierarchical division of society. 

"Society became a breeding ground for chauvinism and discrimination"

It lamented that society "became a breeding ground for chauvinism and discrimination in the form of sati, child marriage, sexual harassment, domestic violence, dowry harassment and such like disparages” which is why laws had to be brought to “overcome this bigotry and free women from the shackles of such specious fetters devised by mankind.”

This is a landmark judgment as it allows women the right to be at par with men. Many times, even though women might have equal rights in the outside world, at home they are relegated to the role of domestic caretakers. Men get to decide in the matters of the family no matter how educated or employed a woman in the family is. A woman's say is always ignored within families in India. 

Why this judgement is inspiring 

It is not normal in our society for women to take charge of the financial decisions in the house. Before marriage, brothers or fathers get to rule the houses and after marriage the husbands. 

 Moreover, even though the law has allowed equal rights in property to women, many families do not recognise it. Women themselves refuse to believe in it and allow men to step over their rights. 

But this judgement upholds the woman's right to be the karta of the family. It allows women to raise their voices against these dominations within households. It recognises women's ability to not only manage the kitchen but also the finances and family. As it is rightly said that revolution starts at home, gaining the goals of women's empowerment should also start from home. 

Views expressed are the author's own.