--- description: A right hitherto reserved for the eldest male member title: Women in India Can Legally Head Their Families, Court Rules image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Indian Court Rules That Hindu Women Can Now Be the Head of Their Own Families by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 2, 2016 7:09 AM CUT by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 2, 2016 7:09 AM CUT In a significant decision Monday, a top court in India’s capital city New Delhi ruled that women are [eligible](http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Woman-can-be-kartaof-a-family-Delhi-high-court/articleshow/50799462.cms "undefined") to become the legal head of a family, a position hitherto reserved only for the eldest male. The Delhi High Court verdict said there is “no restriction” on a woman becoming a family’s _karta_ — a role demarcated by ancient Hindu customs and scripture that defines the manager of a joint family, the _Times of India_ reported. The _karta_ assumes a preeminent position within the family, which comes with the authority to handle its rituals, property, assets and other key matters. According to the _Times_, Monday’s ruling in Delhi was the result of a lawsuit filed by the eldest daughter of one of the city’s business families, whose father was the eldest of four brothers. Following the deaths of all four, her cousin — the eldest son of a younger brother — had claimed he was the rightful _karta_. However, the Delhi court’s Justice Najmi Waziri said: “If a male member of a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), by virtue of his being the first-born eldest, can be a _k_ _arta_, so can a female member.” The decision follows (and, according to the court, is based on the precedent set by) a 2005 amendment to the South Asian nation’s Hindu Succession Act allowing women previously denied equal inheritance rights. \[[_Times of India_](http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Woman-can-be-kartaof-a-family-Delhi-high-court/articleshow/50799462.cms "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4203811/india-delhi-court-karta-hindu-family-ruling/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4203811/india-delhi-court-karta-hindu-family-ruling/"},"headline":"Indian Court Rules That Hindu Women Can Now Be the Head of Their Own Families","datePublished":"2016-02-02T07:09:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:40:27.524Z","description":"A right hitherto reserved for the eldest male member","url":"https://time.com/4203811/india-delhi-court-karta-hindu-family-ruling/","keywords":["women","India","New Delhi","Family","Hindu"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4203811/india-delhi-court-karta-hindu-family-ruling/","name":"Indian Court Rules That Hindu Women Can Now Be the Head of Their Own Families"}}]}] ```