Unit 4 of Family Law – II (syllabus: Module IV — adoption under Hindu law and under the Juvenile Justice Act; maintenance of wife, children and parents, including the Senior Citizens Act; minority and guardianship; and the Uniform Civil Code debate under Article 44). Below: what the unit covers, the provisions it turns on, and the cases an examiner expects you to name.
What this unit covers
- What must be established for a valid adoption?
- Who may take a child in adoption?
- What are the effects of a valid adoption?
- When may a Hindu wife live separately and still claim maintenance?
- How is a dependant's claim to maintenance enforced against an estate?
- Who are the natural guardians of a Hindu minor, and what may they do?
- What decides a dispute about the guardianship or custody of a Hindu minor?
- What is the constitutional basis of the Uniform Civil Code debate?
Treat that list as a self-test: recite each topic's rule from memory before you open its cases.
Provisions
- Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956, s. 5, 6 and 16
- Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956, s. 7 and 8
- Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956, s. 12, with its three provisos, and 15
- Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956, s. 18, with s. 24
- Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956, s. 21, 22, 26, 27 and 28
- Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956, s. 6, 8, 11 and 12
- Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956, s. 13, with s. 17 of the Guardians and Wards Act 1890
- Constitution of India, s. 44, read with Articles 14, 25 and 26
Leading cases
- Sitabai v. Ramchandra
- Sawan Ram v. Kalawanti
- Amarendra Mansingh v. Sanatan Singh
- Dastane v. Dastane
- Githa Hariharan v. Reserve Bank of India
- Manju Tiwari v. Rajendra Tiwari
- Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India
Full case summaries
- Amarendra Mansingh v. Sanatan Singh
- Sawan Ram v. Kalawanti (1967)
- Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India (1995)