UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM AND ENERGY STUDIES

DEHRADUN

PROPERTY RIGHTS AND GENDER INEQUALITY UNDER MUSLIM PERSONAL LAWS

COURSE: B.B.A LL.B. (Hons.)

SUBJECT: FAMILY LAW-II

SUBMITTED BY:

ANKIT SONI

[500110220]

SUBMITTED TO:

MR. ISHAAN MAHESWARI .

Assistant Professor of Law

UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM AND ENERGY STUDIES

DEHRADUN
Contents
............................................................................................................................
1
Acknowledgment ...............................................................................................
3
Declaration .........................................................................................................
4
 Introduction ........................................................................................................
5 Review of Literature
.......................................................................................... 6
Research objective .............................................................................................
9
Research questions .............................................................................................
9
Research Methodology ......................................................................................
9
Chapter 1: An Overview of Muslim Personal Laws relating to property. ......... 9
Chapter 2: Inequality in Property and Other Aspects of Muslim Personal Law.
..........................................................................................................................
12
Marriage ...........................................................................................................
12
Divorce and maintenance ................................................................................
12
Property Rights ................................................................................................
13
Widows Rights .............................................................................................. 13
Daughter Rights ............................................................................................ 13
Mothers Rights.............................................................................................. 14
Sisters Rights ................................................................................................ 14
Chapter 3: plausible Solutions to the Injustice in Muslim personal laws .......
14
Conclusion .......................................................................................................
16
Bibliography ....................................................................................................
17
 Acknowledgment
I, ANKIT SONI [500110220] want to express my sincere gratitude to our teacher MR.
ISHAAN MAHESWARI . Assistant Professor of Law , for giving me the chance to complete
this wonderful project on “Property rights and gender inequality under Muslim personal
laws”

This project allowed me to conduct extensive research and learn about a variety of new
concepts. I am truly appreciative of them. Secondly, I also want to express my gratitude to my
friends and seniors who greatly aided me in completing this assignment in the allotted period.
 Declaration
I ANKIT SONI [500110220], hereby declare that this Research Paper Research Project
work entitled “Property rights and gender inequality under Muslim personal laws” has
been originally carried out by me under the guidance and supervision of MR. ISHAAN
MAHESWARI ., Assistant Professor of Law, UPES ,DEHRADUN .

Place: DEHRADUN

Date: 21-04-2024
 Introduction
Personal laws could be defined as any set of laws that deals with a specific class of persons
based on religion, worship, faith, culture, or all of them. These types of laws are also called
family laws as they mostly deal with issues and topics concerning the family such as
marriagerelated issues or any further divorce, partition, inheritance, guardianship, etc. The
personal laws are different for different religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism, or Islam. 1

Since the classification of these types of laws is based on religion and other related criteria the
sources of the same also come from the holy books and practices of such religion. Such as
Hindu personal laws are based on shrutis i.e., Vedas and smritis, the commentary of any such
Vedas. Similarly, the source of Muslim personal laws is holy books such as the Quran, Sunna,
and Hadis, or other rules such as Ijmaa, qiyas, etc. Other than these personal laws are also a
fractional part of customs, legislation, and judicial decisions.2

These personal laws are secured by Indians as they recognize religious freedom as an essential
fundamental right in part III of the Indian constitution. Article 25 3 to Article 284 of the Indian
constitution provides the citizens with this religious freedom with article 25 talking about
professing, propagating and practising any religion of their choice. Art. 26 provides for freedom
to establish religious institutions and maintenance too. And Art 275. And Art 28. Respectively
for right not to compel for paying tax and stopping religious instructions.

Personal laws have always been advocates of controversy in recent and contemporary parts
whether be it laws and customs related to marriages such as child marriage polygamy or divorce
such as triple talaq. One such controversy or issue with regard to personal laws is being dealt
with in this project with the focus remaining on inequality in personal laws taking an instance
of the property rights of women under Muslim personal laws. 5

1
Arachana Parashar, Gender Inequality and Religious Personal Laws in India, 14 BROWN J. WORLD AFF. 103
(2008).
2
Hidayatullah & Hidayatullah, Mulla’s Principles of Mohammedan Law, Lexis Nexis, Allahabad 120 (14th ed.
1968).
3
INDIA CONST. art. 25.
4
INDIA CONST. art. 28.
5
INDIA CONST. art. 27.
5
Aarushi Tomar, Property Rights of Women Under Muslim Law, 1 Journal of Applicable Law &Jurisprudence
(2020).
Women in society have always acquired the back seat in family India and almost around the
whole world due to the patriarchal society and the head of the family being a male in most of
the places in the world. However, in the recent past we have seen some development over this

issue with many world leaders around the globe becoming female. Even our current president
smt. Draupadi Murmu is one such example of the same.

But when we look through the lens of personal laws there is still much work left for all of us
to achieve. This statement is not specific to any particular religion or culture it goes the same
for all of them. This is why one of the chapters of this research project tries to deal with same
with seeing the inequality in person of Muslim women in other aspects such as marriage,
divorce, custody, and maintenance as well as the difference between the two major sects of
Islam i.e., Shia and Sunni.

Even though there have been significant steps taken at national as well as international levels
such as NCW National Commission for Women at the national level and CEDAW which stands
for Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. However,
the implementation and compliance with the same is still questionable.

At last, whenever we are analyzing any problem, we need to cover many aspects of it such as
its comparison with other aspects and one such aspect is plausible solutions. UCC which stands
for Uniform Civil Code and mention in Art. 44 6 of DPSP i.e., Directive Principle of State Policy
Part IV of the constitution is deemed to be the solution to all the personal law Inequality
problems in India. However, it has not been implemented until now and many scholars and
political persons have raised questions regarding the feasibility of a Uniform Civil Code and
whether would it collide with religious freedom rights in articles 25 to 28 of the Indian
Constitution lastly if not Uniform Civil code than what is the solution of this pertaining
problem.

Review of Literature
Roshan Kumar Gupta & Jayanta Ghosh, A Legal Study on Personal Laws in India with

Respect to Women's Property Rights, 6 NUJS J. REGUL. Stud. 2 (2021): The author through
this article highlights the importance of gender-sensitive social protection programs that

6
INDIA CONST. art. 44.
consider the unique personal laws in India pertaining to women's right to property. The author
through this article cautions us against adopting a one-size-fits-all strategy to tackle domestic
violence, by highlighting how cultural, economic and social factors interplay with the complex
relationship between domestic acts of violence and property ownership. Further, in this article,
through the author's effort to identify and quantification of shares of property owned by women

under various legal systems in India, the researcher understood the problems and challenges
faced by women in property rights in India.

Furthermore, the article aims at empowering women and overcome gender bias and inheritance
systems. The article further takes into account the judicial rulings from the apex courts and the
high courts, which suggest corrective measures to address property rights and issues.

Aslam, A., & Kazmi, S. (2009). Muslim Women and Property Rights. Economic Affairs,
29(2), 10-15: The author and this article examine the property rights granted to women in Islam
as well. Direct instructions and compare these rights to their cultural status and contemporary
Muslim societies.
The author of this article states that Islamic laws as outlined in the Quran and hadiths provide
certain property rights to women which include inheritance rights, the right to own and manage
property and financial security.

The author further suggests that a polling woman's property rate can directly impact economic
growth and development. This may be due to women's increased participation in economic
activities with greater financial security and an increase in their potential to interest in various
economic endeavours. Further, the author contends that a proper application of Islamic property
rights for women has far-reaching social and economic implications. The implication of the
same may lead to a more equitable and prosperous society.

T. NAIK, Women's Succession Rights under Muslim Law, (2021).:The author highlights that
the discussion of women's rights is an undeniably critical and globally relevant topic, and it is
often intervened with the issues related to religion and patriarchy prevailing in our societies.
The article further delves into the complexities of gender inequality and the vital role that the
ownership of property plays in empowering women and breaking them from societal
limitations.
The author through this article emphasizes how property ownership can serve as a means for
women to achieve economic security and independence, providing them with the agency to
overcome the restrictions imposed upon them. As per the author, this is particularly essential
for women in societies where they have historically faced discrimination in terms of property
rate.

This article further points out that while Islam promotes the principle of Tawhid, Risalah, Adl,
and Murat which encompasses the unification of God, the messages of Muhammad that are
justice and equality, there are discrepancies in the actual inheritance rights of a Muslim woman
in various societies.

Saadiya Faculty of Law, Jamia Millia Islamia, Muslim Personal Law And Gender Equality
Concerns In India, International Conference on Law and Justice (2017): The author and
the scientific highlight the issue of personal laws, particularly within the context of gender
equality, which remains a source of controversy and concerns in India. Further, the author
examines specific types of gender inequalities, related to Muslim personal laws, focusing on
property rights and the right of dissolution of marriage. The author further contends that these
gender disparities are not inherently religious. But they are deeply rooted in the cultural
patriarchy prevailing in the society, where discriminatory laws make the situation worse.
Further, one key argument put forth in this article by the author is that gender inequalities faced
by Muslim women in India are primarily a result of cultural patriarchy rather than being
sanctioned by religious documents. It further emphasizes that the existing laws perpetuate this
gender inequality to a greater extent.

Further, the article also highlights the rule of "usul-ul-fiqh" in this context, pointing out that the
lack of understanding and awareness of these Islamic principles has led to underutilization of
the rights that Islam offers to women.

Muslim Women's Rights in India: Codified Personal Laws Needed, Qazi Sarah Rasheed &
A K Sharma: The author of the article explores the historical context along with the
significance of the Muslim Personal Laws (Shariat) Application Act, of 1937, which has
yielded invaluable insights into the challenges confronted by the Muslim women in the Indian
context. The major reason for the same is the absence of a codified legal framework in India
for the governance of personal laws related to the Muslim community.
In this article, the author presents a comparative analysis of the legal reforms. For women from
different religious backgrounds, this comparative illustration eliminates the potential.

Advantages and positive outcomes that could arise from the implementation of qualified
personal loss for Muslim women in India. The article in essence highlights the need for reform
in specific areas of personal laws

In light of these insights, the article has played a vital role in shaping the directions and
arguments of the researcher. The article served as a solid and informative foundation for the
study of the research on critical subjects and for reaching an understanding of the challenges
faced by Muslim women in India and the potential benefits of qualified personal laws for their
rights and well-being.

Research objective
1. To get an overview and bifurcation of Shia and Sunni inheritance laws under
2. To evaluate gender inequality within Muslim Personal Laws.
3. To explore potential reforms in legal frameworks and their feasibility

Research questions
1. How the bifurcation has been done in Shia and Sunni law and how does Muslim
inheritance work?
2. Whether there exists gender equality under Muslim personal laws?
3. What could be potential reforms to be introduced so as to comply with this situation?

Research Methodology
This research study will use analytical research techniques to address the topic “Property rights
and gender inequality under Muslim personal laws.”. Moreover, data will be retrieved using

the doctrinal approach from secondary sources including books, research publications, and

journal articles. research. Moreover, information from original sources like acts, statutes, and

codes will be utilized. Chapter 1: An Overview of Muslim Personal Laws relating to

property.
In Indian civilization, every religion and faith have its own personal laws. These personal laws,
and property rights, one of the most essential factors of passing property and money from one
generation to another Are inheritance and succession, this part of this research paper is going
to study and comprehend the same with reference to the Muslim personal laws in India. This
chapter will give us an overview of Muslim personnel related to Inheritance and succession so
that we can come to our main focus i.e., dealing with Inequality in these laws. 7

In contrast to all other personal laws in India, Muslim personal laws are quite distinct. This is
because they have not been codified and derive their authority immediately from The Quran
and other related religious texts. Even the codification done in 1937 by the Britishers in the

form of the Shariat Application Act was not to codify Islamic personal laws but rather to unite
all customary practices under the sharia law.8

Quran usually provides very liberal interpretation with respect to the property rights of Muslim
women i.e., “For men is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, and for women
is a share of what parents and close relations leave, be it little or much– an obligatory share.”9
However, as the evolution happened this equality diminished due to the adoption of various
customs and practices and at this point in time what we see is that Islamic personal laws provide
for inequality not only in property rights but also in marriage, divorce, and Maintenance.

Now here onwards we will be discussing certain general principles related to property laws in
Islam. There doesn’t exist a Joint family as a distinct entity in Islamic law. 10 There are four
sources of Muslim succession law, the first being the “Quran” itself second “Sunnah” which is
basically a model for what the prophet did in terms of practices and Tradition. Third “Ijma”
which is an Arabic term meaning consensus on a particular point is one of the important sources
of personal law particularly for Sunni Muslims. Lastly, Qiyas works as an application tool for
above mentioned four sources by making a deduction from these texts.

7
Roshan Kumar Gupta & Jayanta Ghosh, A Legal Study on Personal Laws in India with Respect to Women's
Property Rights, 6 NUJS J. REGUL. Stud. 2 (2021).
8
Saadiya Faculty of Law, Jamia Millia Islamia, Muslim Personal Law and Gender Equality Concerns In India,
International Conference on Law and Justice (2017).
9
Qur'an,.4:7. Sürah an-Nisä'.
10
D. Raja Ahmed v. Pacha Bai, (1969) 1 Andh WR 255.
As mentioned above there are two prominent sects in the Muslim Community i.e., Shia and
Suuni There indeed lies a difference between the two sects of Muslims. These differences are
in rituals and ceremonies related to marriage and divorce. Similarly, there is also a difference
between the two in-laws, rules, and regulations related to succession. This difference comes
from the origin of these two sects i.e., on the death of the prophet who was the then ruler of
Arabia, the main issue was, who was going to be his Successor? This was because the prophet
didn’t leave any successor behind him and different groups gave their opinions on the same.
The two most prominent groups were - Firstly who wanted Ali (prophet’s son-in-law, cousin)
to be his successor while the second group advocated for the elections to be held for choosing
the same.11

The group of people who supported Ali came to be known as Shias whereas the ones who
favoured the election and elected. Abu Bakr (Father-in-law of Prophet) as the rightful successor

were called Sunnis. This election was held while the Prophet’s family was preparing for his
funeral. Therefore, this division was more of a political differentiation rather than a religious
one.12 This political differentiation gave birth to two sects and their distinctive legal doctrines
and rituals based upon the division of property that took place here the Islamic law of Property
distribution evolved and is followed even in today's world.14

Under Islamic law of Succession, the property of the distribution could be either by the Will or
Intestate succession which we will discuss later. However, the right upon the property of any
descendant is not by birth.15 Everyone has the right to inherit under both Sunni and Shia systems
of inheritance, until or unless anything prevents him from doing so. A child in the womb is
regarded as a living person if he or she is born alive. Also, under the Muslim law of Inheritance,
there are two methods under which property distribution can take place. First is per capita which
is mainly followed in the Sunni law of inheritance, in this type of inheritance there is
distribution of ancestral property as per the portion defined depending on the no. of heirs.

11
Radford, The Inheritance Rights of Women Under Jewish and Islamic Law, 23 BOSTON COLLEGE
INTERNATIONAL AND COMPARATIVE LAW REVIEW, 135 (2000).
12
Joseph Scahcht, The Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence, Oxford at the Clarendon Press 1950. 14
Narendra Subramanian, Legal Change and Gender Inequality: Changes in Muslim Family Law in India,
33 LAW & SOCIAL INQUIRY, 631–672 (2008). 15
Hasan Ali v. Nazo, (1889) 11 AII 456.
Whereas in Shia Law the inheritance is per strip which means that the share is allocated to
every branch which also depends upon the type of heir and quantity of them.

In Muslim law there are basically two types of Heirs i.e., sharers and residuary whereas in
Sunni law along with these two classes distinct kindered class is also covered which included
people who don’t fits in any of the above class of successors. In Muslim law the property could
be divided either by Will or if the person holding the property dies. In case of person dies
intestate the Shariat Application Act, 1937 is Applied. While, person if dies after writing will
then in that condition the relevant shariat law under Shia and Sunni is applied. However, there
is certain difference with regards to Immovable property if it is situated in the states of Bombay,
West Bengal or Chennai then Indian succession Act, 1925 would apply only in the case of
person dies after writing will i.e., testamentary succession.13

There are 12 class of Sharers in case of Sunni law which includes six females and four males
i.e., “wife, husband, daughter, Son’s Daughter, Full sister, Consanguine sister, mother, uterine
sister, uterine brother, true grandfather, true grandmother, and father.” However, there are only

nine of them in the case of Shia Law which includes six females and three males i.e., “Husband
Wife, mother father, Daughter, full sister, uterine brother and sister, and consanguine sister.”

Chapter 2: Inequality in Property and Other Aspects of Muslim Personal Law.

“shariah” is a term that derives its origin from Arabia and essentially means “path to be
Followed”. This is used by Muslims to follow various aspects of their personal life be it
marriage, divorce, maintenance, or Succession. It is derived not from the Quran but only
supplemented by it. It is basically what people understood from the holy preachings in the
Quran and other subsequent books. Under Shariah, there exists a Patriarchal society, and thus
Males and Various advantages while women suffer injustice. This injustice is at various levels
of personal life. Such as Marriage, maintenance, divorce, and most importantly Succession.
Now here we will be discussing injustice at various levels in detail.

Marriage

13
Nehaluddin Ahmad, Modern Debate on the SocioPolitical Rights of Muslim Women, 13 ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL
ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE LAW 42 (2012).
Firstly, the aim of marriage in Muslim personal law is very unjust i.e., to just please and provide
pleasure and comfort to a man. 14secondly, the age of the marriage of a girl is very arbitrary and
depends just upon Puberty. 15even the female doesn’t possess the freedom in terms of giving
consent and has to rely upon her family for any groom decided by them would be the final say.
Also, one of the important aspects of marriage where the dominancy given to males is clearly
visible is the witness who is present at the time of marriage. Among Sunni Muslims, it is an
inherent rule that a marriage proposal and its acceptance must be done under the supervision
of witnesses and the composition of witnesses could be either one male and two females or two
males.16 This clearly shows that in this ritual one male is equated to two females. Lastly, the
Injustice is about No. of legal partner, as a general rule, Bigamy is a crime under Section 494
of IPC. 17 However, only Muslim males are excluded from this not females giving special
privileges to men.21 Divorce and maintenance
Until the Shayaro Bano case, Talaq-ul-biddat was very prevalent in India.22 Which allowed the
male to get over with marriage just pronouncing the word “Talaq” three times. Even now
women in Islam possess very little power in terms of the ability to give a divorce. Also, under

Muslim Law male is required to maintain her ex-wife only for the ‘Iddat” Period and not

beyond.18 Property Rights

there are many practices and rules in Muslim Personal laws that discriminate against a person
based on his gender in the succession. thought as per the Islamic Legislation women inherit a
minimum half of what male does however the discrimination is in society which equates one
man to two women and if a man possess 2 acre of land women will get only one. Also, in case
the daughter is only a legal descendant she can only possess half of her father’s property.
Hereafter these rules will be discussed in detail so as to understand this discrimination.

14
Nishtha Jain, Gender Inequality in Hindu and Muslim Personal Laws in India, 1 International Journal of Law
Management & Humanities (2018).
15
Yunusbhai Usmanbhai Shaikh v. State of Gujarat, 9 2015 S.C.C. Guj. 6211.
16
Abdullah v. Beepathu, I.L.R. (1921) 1 Ker. 361.
17
Indian Penal Code, 1860 § 494, No. 45, Acts of Parliament, 1860
(India) 21 State of Bombay v. Narasu Appa Mali, A.I.R. 1952 Bom. 84.. 22
Shayara Bano vs. Union of India, (2017) 9 SCC 1.
18
Khurshid Khan v. Husnabanu Mahimood Shaikh, 1976 Cri. L.J. 1584.
Widows Rights
As the situation is with another female in Muslim law. Widow rights to property are very
arbitrary in nature. For example, in the Hanafi school of thought which comes under the Sunni
law the existence of any son or offspring of a son decides the share of the widow into the
property. Without them, she tends to get 1/4th, but in their presence, she might only get 1/8th of
the property of the deceased. This share further decreases depending on the no. of wives the
deceased had. Since women aren’t allowed to marry four times such conditions don’t arrive for
a Deceased husband. Also, in general, the husband gets 1/4th of the property in the presence of
a son or descendants of a son and 1/2 otherwise. Also, if the widow is childless her condition
gets worse under Shia law, she can get 1/4 of the movable property and buildings of her
husband19 whereas in Sunni law she is not entitled to anything from the land property of the
deceased.25 Daughter Rights
Among the all women in Muslim law who can inherit the property from the deceased, the
daughter holds the utmost powers in terms of control over their share of the property. She can
hold, dispose, or sell at her own terms and need not consult anybody else. Under the Hanafi
school of thought daughter usually receives 1/2 of the property the son gets also if there are
more than two daughters, they inherit on a collective basis 2/3 jointly. The similar obligations
of fixed shares are not there in terms of son. Under Shia law, the condition is comparatively

better than that of Sunni law. In the presence of the daughter, mother, and the deceased’s brother
the daughter gets 3/4 and the mother gets the remaining.

Mothers Rights
Mothers do have fewer rights under Muslim law this is because of strong patriarchal
inclinations, particularly under Sunni law. Positive provisions provided for mothers have gotten
worse due to social and cultural factors, particularly patriarchal society's surveillance. A mother
is called a sharer, but lawyer and activist Tyabji believes she is "for all intents and purposes, a
Koranic co-residuary with the father." The existence of a deceased person's heirs affects a
woman's Right to property. If the deceased did not have children, the mother would get onethird

19
Hidayatullah & Hidayatullah, Mulla’s Principles of Mohammedan Law, Lexis Nexis, Allahabad 120 (14th ed.
1968). 25 N. J Coulson, Succession in the Muslim Family, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 3 (1971).
of the estate otherwise 1/6. In contrast, the mother is granted a superior standing in terms of
property rights under Shia Law.

Sisters Rights
In both sects i.e., Shia and Sunni the property rights of a sister are very minimal and are often
influenced by the existence of male members of the family, especially brothers. If there are full
brothers her shares get reduced. This leads to unequal distribution of property rights for sisters
when compared to brothers. Traditional Interpretations of various statues have made this all
discrimination.

Chapter 3: plausible Solutions to the Injustice in Muslim personal laws

Till now we have dealt with the broad concept of how bifurcation has been done in Islamic
personal laws regarding distribution of the property and how there lies an intrinsic injustice in
various aspects of personal lives such as marriage, maintenance, divorce, and most importantly
Inheritance. Even the basic analysis of the previous chapter will tell us that Muslim women
face a plethora of injustice with regard to the inheritance of property in both Shia and Sunni
sects of Islam. But since we have discussed the problem, leaving this research project without
plausible will be like doing injustice to the topic. Therefore, in the following chapter, we are
going to discuss what could be the plausible solutions to injustice faced by Muslim women.

Broadly, there are two plausible solutions to the following problem in which the concept is one
with two different pathways where the concept enactment or codification or laws while the two
pathways are UCC and Codification of Muslim Personal Laws. In this chapter will see which
among the following is the most plausible and practical reform and most importantly which
among the two is the need of the hour and could actually be put into implementation.

UCC which also stands for Uniform Civil Code mentioned in Art. 44 20 of DPSP and Part IV of
the Indian Constitution. Art. 44 states “The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a
uniform civil code throughout the territory of India” This Art. Like others, DPSPs are just
“Instrument of Instruction” and are not of a binding nature. 21 therefore, we can say that even
though written in the constitution it is not mandatory for the government to introduce UCC.
Also, the main aim of this upcoming code is to provide relief to Muslim women. However,
many Muslim Women’s organizations have questioned the legitimacy of such a law on the basis

20
INDIA CONST. art. 44.
21
Unnikrishnan vs State of Andhra Pradesh, 1993 AIR 2178.
of it being violative of Art. 25 22 and Art 29(2).23 also, there has been an argument related to the
inclination of any such law towards the majority religion of the country making it imposing
nature on the minority population. Also, currently, we don’t have any draft for the same, and
making a single statute that satisfies the needs of the majority population is nearly impossible.

But we can’t leave Muslim women in this state of inequality and therefore we can promote
Another argument which is about the codification of Muslim personal laws. Even though there
already exists legislation with regard to Muslim law based upon Sharia i.e., The Muslim
Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, and The Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act
1939 both of these legislations were introduced by the British to maintain the fabric of
legislation as Instinctive to the native population as possible so as to render the natives more
adaptive to British rule. As we, already discussed the Shariah Law was not as suggested by
Islam but more of what preachers (Mostly Male) could understand from it therefore these were
patriarchal in nature. And Britishers when made law keeping the base as same made the
situation worse.

Therefore, the codification of Muslim personal laws could be done by keeping the Quran as a
base in the same manner it was done in the case of Hindu law in the 1950s making
dharamashastras their foundations. This has proved to provide the equality demanded by Hindu
women in various aspects through such codifications and further amendments Also emphasized
why there is a need for UCC in the judgements of Shah Bano 24, Shyara Bano25, and Sarla
Mudgal26. even if UCC is enacted it should not be of the Binding Nature and possibly could be

of the same status as the Special Marriages Act. making such reforms could be a path of
mediation where the need of the hour could be addressed effectively 27.

22
INDIA CONST. art. 25.
23
INDIA CONST. art. 29(2).
24
Mohd. Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum and Ors, 1985 AIR 945.
25
Shayara Bano vs. Union of India, (2017) 9 SCC 1.
26
SARLA MUDGAL & ORS. V/S UNION OF INDIA & ORS., (1995) 3 SCC 635.
27
Qazi Sarah Rasheed & A K Sharma, Muslim Women's Rights in India: Codified Personal Laws Needed, 51
Economic and Political Weekly, 22-25 (2016).
 Conclusion
Personal laws in India based on religion and culture have generated controversies. Particularly,
regarding gender inequalities vial Indian law recognizes religious freedom issues. Persist such
as property rights for Muslim women. National and International efforts have been needed to
address these problems, but their effectiveness is still debated. A Uniform Civil Code is
proposed as a potential solution. However, its visibility and potential conflicts with religious
freedoms and rights are questioned.

Further, the paper focuses on a detailed overview and a clear distinction between Shia and Sunni
inheritance laws, emphasising the variations and key aspects of these legal systems. The chapter
effectively evaluates the prevailing gender inequalities within the Muslim person. The first
chapter of this project provides an overview of Muslim personal laws related to property in
India. It emphasises the importance of inheritance and succession in passing the property across
generations. Further, the chapter outlines the evolution of property rights for Muslim women.
Noting that while the Quran initially advocated for equality and property rights, customs and
practices have led to inequality in various aspects.

The second chapter of the project further delves into the deep-seated gender inequalities present
within Muslim personal laws. Shifting the Central focus to property rights. The chapter reveals
that gender discrimination is inherent in succession laws where Islamic legislation guarantees
women a minimum share of inheritance in the societal norms equating one man to two women,
resulting in unequal distribution of shares.

A widow’s right to property is depicted as arbitrary, especially in the Hanafi school of thought
where the presence of sons significantly diminishes their share. Daughters, on the other hand,
are presented with a comparatively better position with greater control over the property.
However, they also experience discrimination since they are given half of the share which a
son receives. Mothers’ despite being considered as shares have fewer property rights largely
attributed to the patriarchal influences under the Sunni law.

Finally, in the third chapter, the researcher delves into the obstacles and potential solutions
regarding gender inequality within Muslim personal laws. A Uniform Civil Code is a plausible

solution, however, the absence of a draft in the UCC is a significant hurdle. Further, it is
essential to acknowledge the concerns about potential conflicts of the same with Article 25 and
Article 29(2) of the Indian constitution. However, it is emphasized that the need for gender
equality is of utmost importance. The need for the time is qualifying Muslim personal laws as
it can prove to be a constructive step towards enhancing the societal position of Muslim women
in light of inheritance and property rights.

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Indian Constitution……………………………………………………...…………………..12

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