Right to Matrimonial Home as a Property Right: Need for the Law is the Need of the Hour 

Payal Bhatia AND Mr. Soumya Swarup Mohanty
Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad

Volume III, Issue III, 2020

Women constitute half of the Indian population and for the growth and well-being of her family; she performs various responsibilities in her matrimonial home. In spite of all this, after the breakdown of marriage, she receives inadequate support from her matrimonial home in the name of maintenance. Right to Matrimonial property is one of the important issues in the institution of marriage.

A marriage is a partnership of both the spouses, where both of them contribute equally in building a home. The author in this paper has tried to analyze the issue rationally. The paper will explain the concept of co-ownership and separate ownership of the matrimonial home and will also suggest some ways as to how the property should be disposed off between the spouses. The author aims at reaching out to the society and telling that right to matrimonial home would be more concrete if it is made a property right instead of personal right. It also explains as to why personal rights are less secure than property rights. After explaining about the existing matrimonial property rights of women, the author also speaks about the ambiguous nature of Section 27 of the Hindu marriage act and how it has failed to provide the rights to a woman.

With a help of case studies the author has analyzed the current scenario of whether the existing laws are providing equality to women. The paper also gives recommendations to the legislature for the disposal of properties between the spouses and aims at stressing on gender equality and upliftment of women in the society.

The paper also focusses on economic independence of women after the breakdown of a marriage as it has already been recognized that economic independence is a catalyst to the gender equality in the country.

 

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