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Major changes in Hindu Law on succession

What are the changes introduced in the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 and when does it come into force? What will be the tax impact?

The Hindu Succession Act 1956 had recognised equal right for the daughter as for the son in respect of individual property of the father and equal share in father's share in the joint family property.

If the joint family had a karta, wife, two sons and two daughters, the share of father in the joint family of which he was the karta was one third in a deemed partition of joint family on the date of death among coparceners, which included only father and sons. Out of one third shares, his widow and all the four children would get one fifth each, so that each son got one third on deemed partition and one fifth on succession, adding up to two-fifth share, while his widow and daughters would get one fifteenth each, the son getting six times the share of his sister or mother in the joint family property. A major result of the present Amendment is that the right of the daughter is the same as that of the son in the Hindu joint family property. She gets a share equal to her brother's on deemed partition on the death of her father. The amendment has come into force on September 9, 2005. As for the tax impact, tax law will have to follow this law as regards any fallout of such change in succession for income-tax and wealth tax purposes and in recognising joint family partition under Section 171 of the Income-tax Act.

S. RAJARATNAM

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