GUWAHATI: In matrilineal Meghalaya, an autonomous district council is set to tweak a customary practice of passing the property of parents on to the youngest daughter.
The Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) found no justification in the youngest daughter being handed over the entire share of the family property if her siblings are also taking care of their parents.
The Khasi Hills Autonomous District Khasi Inheritance of Property Bill, 2021 will guarantee the equal distribution of the parents’ property among siblings.
The change, if effected, will be significant considering that the customary laws of traditional institutions are virtually unalterable in the tribal societies of the Northeast.
KHADC chief, Titosstarwell Chyne said transferring the parents’ property often becomes problematic when the siblings are all males or if a couple does not have a child.
He said there have been cases where in the absence of a genuine heir, the clans staked claim to the property. There have been also cases of litigations after the parents were dragged to the court by the children, Chyne said.
He said the objective behind bringing the bill was to ensure that the siblings – both male and female – have equal rights to the property of their parents.
He said the bill would have a provision where the parents can decide on their heir vis-à-vis the transfer of property. The bill will have another provision that will deprive a sibling of the right to the property if s/he marries a non-tribal and accepts the spouse’s culture and tradition.
Shillong-based woman activist Angela Rangad welcomed the move to further equality and justice.
“We are yet to read Bill’s fine print as it has not been put in the public domain yet. But if the intention of the council is to bring in a law, making the distribution of property equitable for all Khasi children, male and female, it is in that sense noteworthy,” she said.
She also said that the tradition, which made the youngest daughter the custodian of ancestral property, has for long been misread as ownership being vested on just one person. This custodianship came with the responsibility to care for aged parents, unmarried or destitute siblings, and other clan members, Rangad said.
“For some, custodianship also meant ensuring continuity of rites and rituals. So, hopefully, bestowing property rights equally on all children will further make caring for the aged and destitute in our society a shared responsibility,” she added.