The Rights Of A Woman In The Hindu Marriage Act

Hindu Marriage Act
Matrimonial Disputes » The Rights Of A Woman In The Hindu Marriage Act

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For many generations, women were viewed as the inferior gender; they were viewed as weak, and they were viewed as having no other function in the world other than childbirth. The battle between women and society has a brutal, long history, and it is still going strong now.

Though there is still a long way to go, the enactment of the Hindu Marriage Act, of 1995, was a significant step toward achieving women’s equality and rights.

This act gives Hindu women many basic and necessary rights when they get married to deal with matrimonial disputes.

The act’s primary objective was to update and codify the law governing marriage between Hindus and others. The law became uniform for all Hindu groups as a result of this enactment. It incorporates monogamy and forbids a Hindu from engaging in a married engagement with more than one individual.

Following are some of the legal rights of a wife over husband in a Hindu Marriage Act:-

Right To Streedhan:

While dowry is a Hindu custom of providing the man and his family with Money and goods, voluntarily or otherwise, a streedhan is the act of gifting the woman money and goods by her family, friends, and relatives voluntarily before or after marriage. It can be any sort of moveable or immovable property gift given throughout her life. The assets given as a streedhan are the wife’s property and only hers even if it’s placed under the custody of her husband or in-laws.

She is the sole owner of her streedhan under the Hindu marriage act, section 27, 1995.

Right To A Committed Relationship:

The husband in the marriage is bound to not marry or have any sort of affairs with any other person until he is legally divorced. If he is involved in an extramarital affair then he will be charged under section 497 of IPC for adultery. If the wife wishes, then on the grounds of her husband being in an extramarital affair, she has the right to file for a divorce under hindu marriage act. Adultery usually does not affect the distribution of assets or child custody during a divorce but it does have an impact in the settlement negotiations.

Right To Residence:

No matter if it is an ancestral home, a joint family home, a self-acquired property, or a rented home, a wife has the unalienable right to live in the matrimonial home where her husband stays. No one can force a women to leave her matrimonial house as there are legal rights of wife over husband’s property. Protection of women from domestic violence act, enforced in 2005, gives a women the right to reside in a shared house even in the absence of any form of domestic violence, which means that she cannot be evicted or thrown out from a shared household.

She can live in her matrimonial house in case of her spouse’s death or until she gets a proper place to live after a divorce.

Right To Maintenance:

A Hindu wife has the right to seek support from her husband under section 18 of the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956, upholding her divorce rights in the event that he is guilty of cruelty, desertion, polygamy, or has a venereal illness. It is the legal obligation of the husband to support her wife financially before or after a divorce. The permanent maintenance and alimony provisions of this act are found in section 25.

She can take benefits of this right as long as she stays unmarried or unable to support herself.

  • Right to child maintenance: The husband and wife are both obligated to provide for their minor children, however if the wife finds herself unable or incapable, the husband must provide her with financial support for their children.

In case both partners are monetarily incapacitated, they can take support from their parents to look after the child. Additionally, a minor child also has the right to seek partition in ancestral property.

Right To Life With Dignity And Respect:

  • The right to dignity and respect is one of the most fundamental and significant rights a wife has in a marriage. This indicates that the wife has a legal right to adopt her husband’s and her in-laws’ lifestyles. She has the legal right to exist without being subjected to physical or mental abuse, and if she has, she has the legal right to contact a marriage lawyer, speak about it, and request a divorce on that ground. After marriage, she has the right to remain independent. According to the supreme court, a daughter-in-law should be welcomed into her married home and treated with warmth, respect, dignity, and affection.

Right To Claim Child Custody:

When it comes to requesting custody of her child, a woman has the absolute right, particularly if the child is under five years old. If she leaves the matrimonial home without a court order, she may also take her child with her. Despite granting equal custody rights, a mother might get custody of her kid in the case of a contested residence. At the age of 9 or above, the child’s wish in the matter is considered.

The mother is not given custody if she’s found to be ill-treated and neglecting the child’s needs and welfare by the court.

Right To Report Domestic Violence:

If a woman experiences domestic violence, including acts of physical, mental, sexual, economic, and other mistreatment, she may file a complaint against her spouse and family under the Domestic Violence Act, of 2005.

  • Domestic Violence Act, 2005: This law was passed by the legislature to safeguard wives and other women from abuse by their husbands or other family members. This Act offers the woman the ability to submit a petition against her husband or his family members if her rights are violated or if she suffers any harm, whether it be physical, mental, or emotional.

Right To Parental Property

Every daughter, married or not, has the right to inherit her father’s property upon his passing, per an amendment to the Hindu Succession Act made in 2005. Additionally, they are a part owner of the mother’s property.

BOTTOM LINE

If you’re in need of a professional consultant on legal rights in a marriage:- With a broad range of legal expertise across jurisdictions, Lex Solutions is one of the best and upcoming boutique law practice with its headquarters located in Chandigarh, India.

According to estimates, 65% of people living in urban areas around the world are tenants. This is also true in India due to the sky-high prices of real estate in the major cities and the large population of migrant workers who live there. Nevertheless, living as a renter can be a peaceful arrangement, but occasionally there are situations where one can run into rental problems and other connected issues, such as receiving an unauthorized eviction notice or the erratic behaviour of the landlord.

Are you, however, a renter who is experiencing such problems or simply curious about what to do if you ever find yourself in a similar situation? In that case, allow us to help you through this blog, which will briefly discuss about the several protections against landowner harassment.

What does illegal eviction of tenants mean?

An illegal eviction, also known as an unlawful termination of tenancy, typically happens when a landowner forbids a tenant from entering a rental property or removes the tenant’s belongings from the property through the use of force, intimidation, or other methods (such as cutting off utilities or changing the locks). However, if the landowners evict you without taking the proper legal action, they are breaking the law.

How Do You Respond When Your Landlord Forcibly Evicts You?

Almost every state has rental control legislation pertaining to tenant protection, and each state has established specific circumstances for which the landlord may lawfully evict the renter. Additionally, a tenant has a legal right under the law to appear in court and defend himself against unlawful eviction, and some of those accessible remedies for tenants are discussed below:

Grounds for eviction

Non-payment of rent, breach of the lease, property damage, and illegal activity are the most typical grounds for evicting a renter. The tenant must therefore review the provisions of the State Rent Control Act to ascertain the grounds for eviction specified in the Act. In addition, if the tenant is being evicted for any reason other than those specified in the Act—which is considered wrongful eviction—they must seek the help of an eviction lawyer and the enforcement agencies to halt this.

Suit for injunction

A renter might be unable to leave a property when asked to do so for a number of reasons, such as having a medical emergency or having his elderly parents live with him. When this happens, the tenant has the option to file a case in the appropriate court to obtain an injunction that will prevent them from being evicted for any other grounds (other than those listed in the State’s Rent Act). Along with the assistance of housing rental lawyers, the renter should take this action, if they are violently evicted without providing them with adequate notice.

Rent Controller

In the event that the tenant receives a notice of eviction on pretences, they should go see the rent controller of the relevant jurisdiction and explain why they believe the notice of eviction is invalid. Additionally, following the tenant eviction laws, the court will summon the tenant, who will then be forced to submit his or her case and the arguments supporting the necessary evidence.

Notice of rent payment

If the landowner claims that he has not received the required rent and lists this as the reason for serving the notice of eviction, the tenant may legitimately ask him or her to send the information to his bank account so that he can conduct the transaction and deposit the outstanding rent. Moreover, after agreeing to it, the landowner must give the tenant the information within 10 days of the date they received the notice.

Also Read: Lex Solutions – Your One-Stop Destination For All Things Legal

Steps that you must follow to legally evict a tenant in India

Because eviction laws differ from state to state, the following are typical recommendations for evicting a renter. Nevertheless, you can contact the tenants lawyer of Lex Solutions if you need any assistance.

Serve the Tenant With a Termination Notice

The tenancy must be terminated before a landlord can evict a tenant for cause, and the landowner shall provide the tenant with the required notice before taking legal action to do so. Three different kinds of termination notices are generally available:

  • Pay Rent or Quit: The tenant is required to pay the rent within a predetermined period (often three to five days) or leave the rented property.
  • Cure or Quit: A breach of the rental agreement or lease must be remedied by the tenant within a set amount of time.
  • Unconditional Quit: Without a chance to correct the offense or pay the rent, the tenant must leave the property.

But to evict a tenant without good reason, the landlord must give the renter a 30- or 60-day notice to leave the premises.

File an Eviction Lawsuit

If the renter does not correct the issue or quit the property within the allotted time, the landowner must initiate an unlawful detainer case in small claims court. Following this, landlords have the right to evict tenants by serving a legal notice to tenants to vacate their premises.

Wait for the Tenant’s Answer

Within the time frame given on the summons, the tenant may “answer” the complaint. The renter may, however, use the response to refute the charges or present a defence. And, for instance, a tenant might claim that the eviction was carried out in retaliation or that the unpaid rent was used to pay for repairs the landlord refused to undertake.

Receive a Judgment for Possession

A default judgment is granted to the landowner if the tenant ignores the eviction notice India. Moreover, the landowner is entitled to take ownership of the property if the renter replies with an answer but the court rules in his or her favor.

Remove the Tenant

Despite having the right to reclaim the property, the landlord is unable to evict a renter without the help of a law enforcement official. Nevertheless, the tenant will be informed of the legal eviction and the number of days they have to leave once such an official receives the judgment and the cost. Moreover, the law enforcement authority may physically evict the tenant if they don’t leave the property in the allotted period.

Also Read: Introduction To The Indian Judicial System And Court Hierarchy

Summing Up

Now that you are aware of the characteristics of evictions and how to deal with them in a nation like India, you must use them as needed. Additionally, as a landowner, you must evict a problematic renter per the law. And, to ensure that you are acting legally, consult a local landlord-tenant law attorney in your area. For such assistance, a legal firm in Chandigarh, lexsolution can offer you a one-stop solution.

FAQs

  • Can a tenant seek an injunction against the landlord?

According to the state rental rules present in India, a tenant does not have the right to issue an injunction against the landlord. Moreover, injunction procedures are always discretionary, and a court of law cannot grant a perpetual injunction in favour of the plaintiff against the right owner if the plaintiff is only a trespasser.

  • Can police evict a tenant in India?

Even if the renters behave disrespectfully, the police cannot assist in reclaiming the property. However, the only court with the authority to order the eviction of a tenant is the court of the rent controller under whose jurisdiction the property is located. 

  • When a tenant can get the benefit of protection against eviction?

If the tenant can show that the landlord gave his written approval to the subtenant, he is entitled to protection from eviction. Additionally, it disallows any other consent, including implied or oral permission.