New law gives wife share in property

The Union Cabinet on Friday gave its approval to the Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill 2010, entitling a woman to have a share in her husband’s properties. Adopted children too will enjoy the same rights as biological offspring in terms of inheritance and other matters.

The UPA government had introduced the Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha in August 2010. The bill was referred to the parliamentary standing committee on law and justice to solicit wider feedback from all stakeholders. The committee, in its report, had opposed doing away with the waiting period before a joint motion to annul a marriage. The committee’s report also supported the proposal to make “irretrievable breakdown of marriage” a new ground for divorce.

The Cabinet on Friday partially accepted the com- mittee’s recommendations, leaving it to the courts to decide the “cooling off” period before both parties can move a motion for divorce, sources said. The Cabinet also approved the move to give adopted children the same rights as biological offspring in case their parents opt for a divorce.

The Union Cabinet at its meeting on Friday approved the proposal that a woman should have a share in the property of her husband in case of a divorce. However, it decided that the courts would decide on case-by-case basis quantum of share that a woman should get.

Also, a wife can oppose a husband’s plea for a divorce under the new “irretrievable breakdown of marriage” clause but the same will not be available for a husband in the case of his wife moving court on the same grounds.