Vineeta Sharma v. Rakesh Sharma

The Hindu Succession Act, 1956 was a brave attempt to codify the Hindu Law of Succession and to keep it in line with emerging schools of thought on equitable inheritance. To acquire the constitutional goal of equality between women and men, the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 was passed, endowing the same coparcenary rights to daughters as the sons. However, in the middle of the judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Prakash v. Phulavati[1] and Danamma v. Amar[2], there was significant uncertainty on the issue if the application of the 2005 amendment was retrospective or prospective. When the situation came before a three-member bench of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Vineeta Sharma v. Rakesh Sharma & Ors.[3] case, the Apex Court established that the judgment in the Prakash v. Phulavati case, did not construe the law appropriately and that the application of the 2005 amendment act was retroactive, therefore putting to rest a long-time debate concerning the date of the bestowment of the benefits of the 2005 amendment. [1] Prakash v. Phulavat, AIR 2016, SCC 36. [2] Danamma v. Amar, AIR 2018, SCC 343. [3] Vineeta Sharma v. Rakesh Sharma, AIR 2019, SCC 16