Daughter Property Rigth's

On 9 September 2005, the Hindu Succession (Amendment Act), 2005 (Amendment Act) came into effect and daughters in a joint Hindu family, governed by Mitakshara law, were granted statutory right in the coparcenary property (being property not partitioned or alienated) of their fathers. Historically, the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 (HSA), did not confer any rights on a daughter to the ancestral property of her father. The Amendment Act fuelled a debate on whether a daughter's right in coparcenary property was available even prior to commencement of the Amendment Act, i.e. were the rights granted to daughters in the coparcenary property retrospective in their application? The debate on retrospective application of the Amendment Act has now been put to rest by the recent pronouncement of the Supreme Court (SC) in the case of Prakash & Ors v. Phulavati & Ors, rendered on 16 October 2015. SC, in its judgment, has held that the property rights of daughters are prospective in their application, i.e., to be available only if both the father and the daughter are alive on the date of commencement of the Amendment Act (i.e., 9 September 2005).