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Schools of Law

Due to the emergence of various commentaries on Smriti and Sruti, different schools of thought arose. The commentary in one part of the country varied from the commentary in other parts of the country.
Schools of Hindu law | Family Law - CLAT PGA school means rules and principles of Hindu Law which are divided into opinion. It is not codified. There are two Schools of Hindu Law:

  •  Mitakshara 
  •  Dayabhaga 

Mitakshara School 

  • Mitakshara School prevails throughout India except in  Bengal  . It is a running commentary on the code of  Yajnavalkya  (Yajnavalkya Smriti).
  • Rights in the joint family property is acquired by  birth  , and as a rule, females have no right of  succeession  to the family property.
  • The right to property passes by  survivorship  to the other male members of the family.

Dayabhaga School 

  • Dayabhaga School is dominant in  Assam  and  West Bengal  .
  • Rights in the joint family property are acquired by  inheritance  or by  will  , and the share of a deceased male member goes to his  widow  in default of a closed heir.

Mitakshara School

Introduction 
One of the most significant schools of Hindu law, Mitakshara is a running editorial of the Smriti composed by Yajnavalkya. This school is relevant in the entire piece of India with the exception of  West Bengal  and  Assam  .

Sub-Schools of Mitakshara 

Mitakshara is additionally isolated into five sub-schools:

  • Benaras Hindu Law School 
  • Mithila Law School 
  • Maharashtra Law School 
  • Punjab Law School 
  • Dravida or Madras Law School 
  1. Benaras Hindu Law School : This law school goes under the authority of the Mitakshara graduate school and covers Northern India including Orissa. Viramitrodaya Nirnyasindhu vivada is a portion of its significant discourses.
  2. Mithila School of Hindu Law : This law school practices its clout in the regional pieces of  Tirhoot  and north  Bihar  . The standards of the graduate school win in the north. The significant analyses of this school are  Vivadaratnakar  ,  Vivadachintamani  ,  Smritsara  .
  3. Maharashtra or Bombay School of Hindu Law : The Maharashtra law school has the power to practice its locale over the regional parts including  Gujarat  ,  Karana  , and the parts where the  Marathi  language is capably spoken. The fundamental specialists of these schools are  Vyavhara Mayukha  ,  Virmitrodaya  , and so forth.
  4. Madras School of Hindu Law : This law school will in general spread the entire southern piece of India. It additionally practices its specialists under Mitakshara graduate school. The primary specialists of this school are  Smriti Chandrika  ,  Vaijayanti  , and so on.
  5. Punjab School of Hindu Law : This law school was prevalently settled in  East Punjab  . It had built up its own traditions and conventions. The fundamental critiques of this school are  Viramitrodaya  and it built up customs

Question for Schools of Hindu law
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Which school of Hindu Law prevails throughout India except in Bengal?
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Dayabhaga School

  • The Dayabhaga school overwhelmingly  won  in  Assam  and  West Bengal  . This is additionally one of the most significant schools of Hindu laws. It is viewed as a summary of the main smritis. Its essential center was to manage  parcel  ,  legacy  and  joint family  . As indicated, it was fused in the middle of 1090-1130 A.D. 
  • Dayabhaga school was planned with the end goal of annihilating the various foolish and counterfeit standards of legacy.The immediate advantage of this new condensation is that it will in general evacuate all the deficiencies and impediments of the recently settled standards and consideration of numerous cognates in the rundown of beneficiaries, which was limited by the Mitakshara school.

Key Features of Dayabhaga School 

  • Sapinda relation is by pinda offerings.
  • The right to Hindu joint family property is not by birth but only on the death of the father.
  • The system of devolution of property is by inheritance. The legal heirs (sons) have definite shares after the death of the father.
  • Each brother has ownership over a definite fraction of the joint family property and so can transfer his share.
  • The widow has a right to succeed to her husband's share and enforce partition if there are no male descendants.
  • On the death of the husband, the widow becomes a co-parcener with the other brothers of the husband. She can enforce partition of her share.

Legislation and Hindu Law 

  • Legislation is a modern source of Hindu Law. It has been an important factor in the development of Hindu Law. Most of them are in the direction of reforming Hindu Law. In different parts of the country, there were different rules and practices. It was difficult to find fixed principles of law on several areas.
  • Many important acts have been passed which have the effect of changing the religious nature of Hindu Law at several instances. Legislation has become at present a potential source of law in India.
  • Important Legislations which have modified, altered, and supplemented the textual Hindu law are as follows:
  1. The Hindu Inheritance Act, 1928
  2. Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929
  3. The Hindu Gains of Learning Act, 1930
  4. The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
  5. The Hindu Succession Act, 1956
  6. The Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956
  7. The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956
  8. The Hindu Widow's Remarriage Act, 1856
  9. The Special Marriage Act, 1872
  10. The Indian Majority Act, 1875
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1. What are the main differences between the Mitakshara and Dayabhaga schools of Hindu law?
Ans. The Mitakshara school follows the principle of coparcenary, where sons acquire a right by birth in the ancestral property. In contrast, the Dayabhaga school does not recognize this concept; property is inherited only upon the death of the owner. Additionally, the Mitakshara school is prevalent in most parts of India, while the Dayabhaga school is primarily followed in Bengal.
2. How does legislation impact the application of Hindu law in India?
Ans. Legislation has significantly influenced Hindu law, especially with the enactment of laws such as the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, which aimed to provide equal rights to daughters in ancestral property, thereby modifying traditional practices. These laws help harmonize personal law with constitutional principles of equality and justice.
3. What role does the concept of coparcenary play in the Mitakshara school?
Ans. In the Mitakshara school, coparcenary is a fundamental concept that allows male members of a Hindu joint family to have an equal right to ancestral property by virtue of birth. This means that all sons are entitled to a share in the property, promoting the idea of joint family ownership and collective rights.
4. Can a daughter inherit property under the Dayabhaga school?
Ans. Yes, under the Dayabhaga school, daughters have the right to inherit property, but this right is not by birth like in the Mitakshara school. Daughters can inherit property from their father and mother's side, and they have equal rights as sons in terms of inheritance.
5. How do the principles of Mitakshara and Dayabhaga interact with contemporary legal practices?
Ans. Contemporary legal practices in India increasingly integrate principles from both Mitakshara and Dayabhaga schools with statutory laws. For example, the Hindu Succession Act has modified traditional inheritance rules, allowing women to inherit property and thus blending the normative aspects of these schools with modern legal standards aimed at promoting gender equality.
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