Cabinet nod to women’s share in husband’s ancestral property

The Bill is now expected to come up for passage in the Monsoon Session of Parliament next month.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved amendments to the marriage law to enable a married woman to get a share of her husbands ancestral property as compensation in case of a divorce.

Accepting a slew of recommendations of a Group of Ministers (GoM) that was set up to debate the issue,the Cabinet cleared the Bill that is now expected to come up for passage in the Monsoon Session of Parliament next month.

The GoM had been tasked to ensure that the marriage law was made more women-friendly and decide how sufficient compensation can be given to a woman from her husbands ancestral property in case of divorce on the ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage.

The GoM was also asked to take a view on whether a judge can exercise discretion in granting divorce if one of the partners does not move a second joint application for divorce with mutual consent.

In the event that ancestral property cannot be divided,the new bill says that the woman should get adequate compensation by calculating the husbands share. The GoM also discussed the issue of allowing courts to decide on doing away with the mandatory six-month waiting period for couples seeking divorce through a joint petition by mutual consent.