Report No. 66

3.28. Property inherited by women.-

As to property inherited by women, we may state that though earlier writers like Baudhayana1, declared the total incompetency of women for inheritance on the ground of their deficiency of strength, the text of Manu which2 deals with the inheritance of the nearest Sapindas, has been interpreted by the commentators as recognising the rights of the wife as a Sapinda3, notwithstanding Manu's declaration4 to the contrary. There are also other passages to be found in Manu, recognising the capacity of a woman to hold property.5

1. Baudhayana, Prasna II, Kanda II, 27; Banerji Marriage and Stridhana, (1923), p. 369.

2. Manu IX, 187.

3. Manu VIII, 416.

4. Banerji Marriage and Stridhana, (1923), pp. 369 and 373.

5. P.S. Sivaswamy Iyer Evolution of Hindu Moral Ideals (Kamla lectures), University of Calcutta (1935), p. 65.