In Brief
Two daughters claimed equal share in their father's joint family property after his 2001 death. The daughters were born before the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Lower courts denied their claim, holding that daughters born before the Act's enactment cannot be coparceners. The Supreme Court allowed their appeal, holding that the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 grants daughters coparcenary rights by birth, equal to sons. These rights apply to all living daughters of living coparceners as on 9 September 2005, regardless of birth date. The daughters became entitled to equal shares alongside sons in the partition proceeding.
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