(Act No. 78 of 1956)
[21st December, 1956]
13. Right of adoptive parents to dispose of their
properties - Subject to any agreement to the contrary,
an adoption does not deprive the adoptive father or
mother of the power to dispose of his or her property
by transfer inter vivos or by will.
14. Determination of adoptive mother in certain cases
- (1) Where a Hindu who has a wife living adopts a child,
she shall be deemed to be the adoptive mother.
(2) Where an adoption has been made with the consent of
more than one wife, the seniormost in marriage among them
shall be deemed to be the adoptive mother and the others
to be stepmothers.
(3) Where a widower or a bachelor adopts a child, any
wife whom he subsequently marries shall be deemed to
be the stepmother of the adopted child.
(4) Where a widow or an unmarried woman adopts a child,
any husband whom she marries subsequently shall be deemed
to be the stepfather of the adopted child.
15. Valid adoption not to be cancelled - No adoption
which has been validly made can be cancelled by the
adoptive father or mother or any other person, nor can
the adopted child renounce his or her status as such
and return to the family of his or her birth.
16. Presumption as to registered documents relating
to adoption - Whenever any document registered under
any law for the time being in force is produced before
any court purporting to record an adoption made and
signed by the person giving and the person taking the
child in adoption, the court shall presume that the
adoption has been made in compliance with the provisions
of this Act unless and until it is disproved.
17. Prohibition of certain payments - (1) No person
shall receive or agree to receive any payment or other
reward in consideration of the adoption of any person,
and no person shall make or give or agree to make or
give to any person any payment or reward the receipt
of which is prohibited by this section.
(2) If any person contravenes the provisions of sub-section
(1), he shall be punishable with imprisonment which
may extent to six months, or with fine, or with both.
(3) No prosecution under this section shall be instituted
without the previous sanction of the State Government
or an officer authorised by the State Government in
this behalf.
CHAPTER III
MAINTENANCE
18. Maintenance of wife - (1) Subject to the provisions
of this section, a Hindu wife, whether married before
or after the commencement of this Act, shall be entitled
to be maintained by her husband during her life time.
(2) A Hindu wife shall be entitled to live separately
from her husband without forfeiting her claim to maintenance
-
(a) if he is guilty of desertion, that is to say, of
abandoning her without reasonable cause and without
her consent or against her wish, or of wilfully neglecting
her;
(b) if he has treated her with such cruelty as to cause
a reasonable apprehension in her mind that it will be
harmful or injurious to live with her husband;
(c) if he is suffering from a virulent form of leprosy;
(d) if he has any other wife living;
(e) if he keeps a concubine in the same house in which
his wife is living or habitually resides with a concubine
elsewhere;
(f) if he has ceased to be a Hindu by conversion to
another religion;
(g) if there is any other cause justifying living separately.
(3) A Hindu wife shall not be entitled to separate residence
and maintenance from her husband if she is unchaste
or ceases to be a Hindu by conversion to another religion.
19. Maintenance of widowed daughter-in-law - (1)
A Hindu wife, whether married before or after the commencement
of this Act, shall be entitled to be maintained after
the death of her husband by her father-in-law;
Provided and to the extent that she is unable to maintain
herself out of her own earnings or other property or,
where she has no property of her own, is unable to obtain
maintenance -
(a) from the estate of her husband or her father or
mother, or
(b) from her son or daughter, if any, or his or her
estate.
(2) Any obligation under sub-section (1) shall not be
enforceable if the father-in-law has not the means to
do so from any coparcenary property in his possession
out of which the daughter-in-law has not obtained any
share, and any such obligation shall cease on the re-marriage
of the daughter-in-law.
20. Maintenance of children and aged parents - (1)
Subject to the provisions of this section a Hindu is
bound, during his or her lifetime, to maintain his or
her legitimate or illegitimate children and his or her
aged or infirm parents.
(2) A legitimate or illegitimate child may claim maintenance
from his or her father or mother so long as the child
is a minor.
(3) The obligation of a person to maintain his or her
aged or infirm parent or a daughter who is unmarried
extends in so far as the parent or the unmarried daughter,
as the case may be, is unable to maintain himself or
herself out of his or her own earnings or other property.
Explanation. - In this section "parent"
includes a childless stepmother.
21. Dependants defined - For the purposes of this
Chapter "dependants" mean the following relatives
of the deceased : -
(i) his or her father;
(ii) his or her mother;
(iii) his widow, so long as she does not re-marry;
(iv) his or her son or the son of his predeceased son
or the son of a predeceased son of his predeceased son,
so long as he is a minor: provided and to the extent
that he is unable to obtain maintenance, in the case
of a grandson from his father's or mother's estate,
and in the case of a great grand-son, from the estate
of his father or mother or father's father or father's
mother;
(v) his or her unmarried daughter, or the unmarried
daughter, or the unmarried daughter of his predeceased
son or the unmarried daughter of a predeceased son of
his predeceased son, so long as she remains unmarried:
provided and to the extent that she is unable to obtain
maintenance, in the case of a grand-daughter from her
father's or mother's estate and in the case of a great-grand-daughter
from the estate of her father or mother or father's
father or father's mother;
(vi) his widowed daughter: provided and to the extent
that she is unable to obtain maintenance :
(a) from the estate of her husband, or
(b) from her son or daughter if any, or his or her estate;
or
(c) from her father-in-law or his father or the estate
of either of them;
(vii) any widow of his son or of a son of his predeceased
son, so long as she does not remarry: provided and to
the extent that she is unable to obtain maintenance
from her husband's estate, or from her son or daughter,
if any, or his or her estate; or in the case of a grandson's
widow, also from her father-in-law's estate;
(viii) his or her minor illegitimate son, so long as
he remains a minor;
(ix) his or her illegitimate daughter, so long as she
remains unmarried.
22. Maintenance of dependants - (1) Subject to the
provisions of sub-section (2) the heirs of a deceased
Hindu are bound to maintain the dependants of the deceased
out of the estate inherited by them from the deceased.
(2) Where a dependant has not obtained, by testamentary
or intestate-succession, any share in the estate of
a Hindu dying after the commencement of this Act, the
dependant shall be entitled, subject to the provisions
of this Act, maintenance from those who take the estate.
(3) The liability of each of the persons who takes the
estate shall be in proportion to the value of the share
or part of the estate taken by him or her.
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained sub-section (2)
or sub-section (3), no person who is himself or herself
a dependant shall be liable to contribute to the maintenance
of others, if he or she has obtained a share or part
the value of which is, or would, if the liability to
contribute were enforced, become less than what would
be awarded to him or her by way of maintenance under
this Act.
23. Amount of maintenance - (1) It shall be in the
discretion of the court to determine whether any, and
if so what, maintenance shall be awarded under the provisions
of this Act, and in doing so the court shall have due
regard to the considerations set out in sub-section
(2), or sub-section (3), as the case may be, so far
as they are applicable.
(2) In determining the amount of maintenance, if any,
to be awarded to a wife, children or aged or infirm
parents under this Act, regard shall be had to -
(a) the position and status of the parties;
(b) the reasonable wants of the claimant;
(c) if the claimant is living separately, whether the
claimant is justified in doing so;
(d) the value of the claimant's property, and any income
derived from such property, from the claimant's own
earnings or from any other source;
(e) the number of persons entitled to maintenance under
this Act.
(3) In determining the amount of maintenance, if any,
to be awarded to a dependant under this Act, regard
shall be had to -
(a) the net value of the estate of the deceased after
providing for the payment of his debts;
(b) the provisions, if any made under a will of the
deceased in respect of the dependant;
(c) the degree of relationship between the two;
(d) the reasonable wants of the dependant;
(e) the past relations between the dependant and the
deceased;
(f) the value of the property of the dependant and any
income derived from such property; or from his or her
earnings or from any other source;
(g) the number of dependant entitled to maintenance
under this Act.
24. Claimant to maintenance should be a Hindu - No
person shall be entitled to claim maintenance under
this Chapter if he or she has ceased to be a Hindu by
conversion to another religion.
25. Amount of maintenance may be altered on change
of circumstances - The amount of maintenance whether
fixed by a decree of court or by agreement, either before
or after the commencement of this Act, may be altered
subsequently if there is a material change in the circumstances
justifying such alteration.
26. Debts to have priority - Subject to the provisions
contained in section 27 debts of every description contracted
or payable by the deceased shall have priority over
the claims of his dependants for maintenance under this
Act.
27. Maintenance when to be a charge - A dependant's
claim for maintenance under this Act shall not be a
charge on the estate of the deceased or any portion
thereof, unless one has been created by the will of
the deceased, by a decree of court, by agreement between
the dependant and the owner of the estate or portion,
or otherwise.
28. Effect of transfer of property on right to maintenance
- Where a dependant has a right to receive maintenance
out of an estate, and such estate or any part thereof
is transferred, the right to receive maintenance may
be enforced against the transferee if the transfer has
notice of the right or if the transfer is gratuitous;
but not against the transferee for consideration and
without notice of the right.
CHAPTER IV
REPEALS AND SAVINGS
29. Repealed - Rep. By the Repealing and Amending
Act, 1960 (58 of 1960),s.2 and Sch.I.
30. Savings - Nothing contained in this Act shall
affect any adoption made before the commencement of
this Act, and the validity and effect of any such adoption
shall be determined as if this Act had not been passed.
Quantum
Designs