ILLEGITIMACY AND RIGHTS IN HINDU LAW

AUTHOR – PURWA BALA, LLM STUDENT AT IILM UNIVERSITY, GREATER NOIDA, U.P, INDIA

BEST CITATION – PURWA BALA, ILLEGITIMACY AND RIGHTS IN HINDU LAW, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 4 (1) OF 2024, PG. 1145-1151, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

The status of an illegitimate child was not as unusual in Hindu law as it was in Common law, but this was altered in codified Hindu law, most likely as a result of English dominance during India’s colonial era. Specifically, the paper examines how Hindu law treats illegitimate children and examines the historical connection between marital status and validity, as well as the constitutional and societal foundations of the law. This relationship has been maintained for millennia across nations for moral and legal reasons; yet, experts in the subject have even justified it as a means of maintaining civilization by preserving its essential component—a traditional household. The court system, administration, and legislation in India are all part of the same apparatus that is obsessed with upholding the ideal household, albeit with notable exceptions. They have shown disdain for any alternative, despite the possibility that the rights of illegitimate children are incidental effects. As a result, this difference now contravenes Indian law. Crucially, the social rationale for preserving this distinction has already become out of date with the adoption of new reproductive technologies (such as assisted reproduction) or family structures (same-sex couples). Consequently, our research suggests that the differences in legislation should be eliminated to benefit the three parties involved in the illegitimacy association: the child, the unmarried parents, and the unmarried parent.

Keywords: Hindu, marital, Indian, illegitimacy.