Schools of Hindu Law

Why Hindu law has two schools, where each applies, and the four Mitakshara sub-schools

In one minute

Hindu law has two schools. The Mitakshara school governs most of India. The Dayabhaga school governs Bengal and Assam. Each rests on a commentary by a different scholar.

The schools differ most on family property. Exams ask where each applies, why they arose and what the Mitakshara sub-schools are.

Exam focus

Frequency: Occasionally asked
Usually asked as: Short answer (4 to 6 marks)

Legal provision

No Act lists the schools. The Hindu Acts only refer to them in a few places.

Section 6(1), Hindu Succession Act, 1956: the daughter's birthright applies "in a Joint Hindu family governed by the Mitakshara law". A Dayabhaga family is outside that rule.
Section 4, Hindu Succession Act, 1956: a text or interpretation of Hindu law on a matter covered by the Act stops having effect. School rules survive only on matters the Act does not cover.
Section 3(a), Hindu Marriage Act, 1955: local custom that meets the test has the force of law, so a sub-school's local rule can survive as custom.

Meaning and definition

A school of Hindu law is a system of rules built on one authoritative commentary and followed in a particular region. The schools agree on the basic religion. They disagree on how a family holds and passes on property.

The schools of Hindu lawHow to read this: the top box is Hindu law. The two boxes below are the schools, with their regions and sub-schools.

Hindu law
- Mitakshara schoolAll India except Bengal and Assam. Sub-schools: Benares, Mithila, Maharashtra (Bombay), Dravida (Madras).
- Dayabhaga schoolBengal and Assam. No sub-schools.

Detailed explanation

Step 1: why schools arose

The Smritis were the common base, but they sometimes disagreed. Scholars in different regions wrote commentaries and digests to settle the conflicts. Two of these works became so respected that courts and communities followed them as the law of their region. That is how the schools formed.

Step 2: the Mitakshara school

The Mitakshara is a commentary by Vijnaneshwara on the Yajnavalkya Smriti. It governs the whole country except Bengal and Assam. Its best-known idea is that a son gets an interest in ancestral property by birth. Where a point is not covered, local sub-schools add their own authorities.

Benares school: Northern India. The Mitakshara is read with the Viramitrodaya.
Mithila school: Tirhut and northern Bihar. The Vivada Chintamani is its chief supplement.
Maharashtra (Bombay) school: Western India. The Vyavahara Mayukha carries special weight.
Dravida (Madras) school: Southern India, including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The Smriti Chandrika carries special weight.

Step 3: the Dayabhaga school

The Dayabhaga is a digest by Jimutavahana. It governs Bengal and Assam and has no sub-schools. Its central idea is that sons get no right in family property by birth. Rights arise on the owner's death. A separate note compares the two schools in detail.

Step 4: which school governs a family

The school follows the family's origin and residence. A family that moves to another State generally keeps its school, unless it has accepted the usage of the new place. A person can also be governed by custom that departs from the school.

Example. A family from Kolkata settles in Hyderabad and lives there for fifty years. Unless it has accepted local usage, the Dayabhaga school still governs its property rights.

Exceptions and special rules

Punjab: customary law has long had strong force there, so custom often decides what a school rule would otherwise decide.
The Acts prevail: on marriage, succession, adoption and guardianship the Hindu Acts apply to all schools alike. School differences now matter mainly for joint family property.
Section 6, Hindu Succession Act: the coparcenary rule for daughters speaks of the Mitakshara law only.

Don't confuse: the four Mitakshara sub-schools

Sub-school	Region	Special authority
Benares	Northern India	Viramitrodaya
Mithila	Tirhut, northern Bihar	Vivada Chintamani
Maharashtra (Bombay)	Western India	Vyavahara Mayukha
Dravida (Madras)	Southern India	Smriti Chandrika

Inside the concept. A family in Vijayawada follows the Dravida sub-school. It is a Mitakshara family, so a son gets a birthright share in ancestral property.

Just outside it. A family in Kolkata follows the Dayabhaga school. It is not a Mitakshara sub-school, and a son has no birthright share.

Common mistakes

Calling the four sub-schools separate schools. They are branches of the Mitakshara.
Placing the Dayabhaga outside Bengal and Assam.
Saying the schools still govern marriage and succession. The Acts replaced them there.
Mixing up the authors: Vijnaneshwara wrote the Mitakshara, Jimutavahana the Dayabhaga.

Apply it

Problem

Arun's family has lived in Guntur for generations. His father dies and Arun's brother says each son gets a share only after the father's death. Which school's rule decides, and is the brother right?

Issue

Which school governs Arun's family?

Rule

The Mitakshara school governs Andhra Pradesh through its Dravida sub-school. Under it, a son acquires an interest in ancestral property by birth.

Application

The brother describes the Dayabhaga position. Arun's family follows the Mitakshara, so Arun held an interest from birth in ancestral property.

Conclusion

The brother is wrong for ancestral property. The Mitakshara rule applies.

Leading case laws

Collector of Madura v. Moottoo Ramalinga Sathupathy
Facts. A widow in the Ramnad zamindari in South India adopted a son without her husband's express authority, but with his kinsmen's assent.

Principle. The Privy Council traced the growth of Hindu law and the schools and held that clear proof of local usage outweighs the written text.

Why it matters. It shows that a region's usage can shape the rule inside a school.

How to write this answer in the exam

5-mark answer

Meaning and origin of the schools.
Mitakshara: author, region.
Dayabhaga: author, region.
Four Mitakshara sub-schools.

10-mark answer

Why schools arose from the commentaries.
Mitakshara and its four sub-schools with regions and authorities.
Dayabhaga and its region.
How a family's school is fixed.
Effect of the Hindu Acts and section 6.
Ramnad case on local usage.

Key points to remember

Two schools: Mitakshara (Vijnaneshwara) and Dayabhaga (Jimutavahana).
Dayabhaga governs Bengal and Assam. Mitakshara governs the rest of India.
Mitakshara sub-schools: Benares, Mithila, Maharashtra (Bombay), Dravida (Madras).
Dayabhaga has no sub-schools.
Section 6, Hindu Succession Act, speaks of the Mitakshara law only.

Quick self-test

1. Who wrote the Dayabhaga?

Jimutavahana.

2. Which sub-school governs Southern India?

The Dravida (Madras) school.

3. Where does the Dayabhaga apply?

Bengal and Assam.