KSLU Solved Question Papers
Family Law I (Hindu Law)
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 5
2025 Jan (100 marks) Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 5 Family Law I (Hindu Law) 2025 Jan (100 marks) Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
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Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2025 Jan (100 marks) examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2025 Jan (100 marks) examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 100 · 13 questions answered
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Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1What is custom ? Briefly explain requirement of a valid custom.[16]
Answer
For full marks, cover: custom as a source of Hindu law and why it mattered; the definition in section 3(a) of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 read word by word; the requirements of a valid custom, each explained: antiquity, continuity, uniformity, certainty, reasonableness, conformity with public policy and morality, consistency with statute, non-discontinuance of a family custom; the burden and standard of proof and judicial notice; Hurpurshad, Ramalakshmi Ammal, Saraswathi Ammal, Ujagar Singh, Surajmani Stella Kujur and Collector of Madura explained; where the Acts still give effect to custom; a table; a conclusion.
Custom in Hindu law
Custom is a rule that a group of people has followed for so long that it binds them as law. The smritis themselves recognised it. The king was told to decide disputes according to the usages of the country, the caste and the family.
In practice custom was the most powerful of the classical sources. A proved custom could override the written texts. In Collector of Madura v. Moottoo Ramalinga Sathupathy, (1868) 12 MIA 397, the Privy Council said that under the Hindu system of law, clear proof of usage will outweigh the written text of the law. There the Board upheld a widow's adoption made with the consent of her husband's kinsmen, as the Dravida school allowed.
The statutory definition, read word by word
Section 3(a) of the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 says that custom and usage "signify any rule which, having been continuously and uniformly observed for a long time, has obtained the force of law among Hindus in any local area, tribe, community, group or family". Section 3(1)(d) of the Hindu Succession Act 1956 and section 3(a) of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956 use the same words.
- "any rule": custom is a rule of conduct, not a single act or an occasional practice.
- "continuously and uniformly observed": the rule must have been followed without a break and in the same way.
- "for a long time": it must be old.
- "has obtained the force of law": the people concerned must regard it as binding, not as optional.
- "in any local area, tribe, community, group or family": it may be local, tribal, communal or confined to one family.
Two provisos follow. The rule must be "certain and not unreasonable or opposed to public policy". A rule applicable only to a family must not have been "discontinued by the family".
The requirements of a valid custom
1. Antiquity. A custom must be ancient. In Hurpurshad v. Sheo Dyal, (1876) LR 3 IA 259, the Privy Council said that a custom must be ancient, certain and reasonable. English law asks for proof of use from time immemorial, which is fixed at the year 1189. Indian courts do not insist on that. They ask only that the custom be of long standing, so that the people have come to accept it as law.
2. Continuity. The custom must have been followed without interruption. A practice that was given up for a long period and then revived is not a continuous custom.
3. Uniformity, or invariability. The custom must have been followed in the same way on each occasion. In Ramalakshmi Ammal v. Sivanantha Perumal Sethurayar, (1872) 14 MIA 570, a family custom of succession to a zamindari in Tinnevelly was set up. The Privy Council held that special usages which modify the ordinary law of succession must be ancient and invariable. They must also be proved by clear and unambiguous evidence. The custom pleaded failed that test.
4. Certainty. The terms of the custom must be definite. A court must be able to say exactly what the rule requires and to whom it applies. A vague claim that "the family always did things differently" is not a custom.
5. Reasonableness. A custom must not be unreasonable. The courts test this by asking whether the custom is fair and sensible in its setting, not whether a judge would have chosen it.
6. Not opposed to public policy or morality. A custom that is immoral, or that offends public policy, is void however ancient it is. Courts have refused to enforce customs that permit what the law treats as immoral, or that are plainly oppressive.
7. Not opposed to statute. A custom cannot prevail over an express enactment. The codifying Acts make this explicit. Section 4 of the Hindu Marriage Act and section 4 of the Hindu Succession Act give the Acts overriding effect. On any matter for which the Act provides, a custom ceases to have effect unless the Act saves it.
8. A family custom must not have been discontinued. A custom that binds one family ends if the family abandons it. This is the second proviso to the definition.
Who must prove a custom, and how
A custom departs from the ordinary law. So the person who relies on it must plead it and prove it. The standard is strict.
In Saraswathi Ammal v. Jagadambal, AIR 1953 SC 201, a woman of the dasi community of Tanjore died leaving three daughters. One daughter set up a custom that only an unmarried daughter initiated as a dasi could inherit. The Supreme Court held that the custom was not proved. Special customs need strict proof. In its absence the court applied the rule of nearness of relationship as justice, equity and good conscience. So the three daughters took equally.
Surajmani Stella Kujur v. Durga Charan Hansdah, AIR 2001 SC 938, states the rule in modern terms. Both spouses belonged to notified Scheduled Tribes, so the Hindu Marriage Act did not apply to them. The wife prosecuted her husband for bigamy, relying on a tribal custom of monogamy. The Supreme Court held that a custom must be pleaded and proved to be ancient, certain and reasonable. "Custom being in derogation of the general rule is required to be construed strictly." She had not pleaded or proved a custom making a second marriage void. So the prosecution failed.
Judicial notice: when proof is not needed
A custom need not be proved afresh in every case once the courts have recognised it often enough. In Ujagar Singh v. Mst. Jeo, AIR 1959 SC 1041, a collateral of the eighth degree relied on a general Punjab custom, recorded in Rattigan's Digest, that excluded sisters. The Supreme Court held that all customs, general or special, must ordinarily be proved. Judicial notice can be taken only of a custom that the courts have repeatedly recognised. Rattigan's statement had been contradicted too often. Since neither party proved a custom, Hindu law applied and the sister succeeded.
Where the Acts still give effect to custom
Statute now prevails over custom, but the Acts themselves save custom in several places.
- A marriage within the prohibited degrees or between sapindas is valid if the custom of each party permits it. This is section 5(iv) and (v) of the Hindu Marriage Act.
- A marriage may be solemnized by the customary rites of either party (section 7).
- A right to divorce recognised by custom is preserved (section 29(2)).
- A married person, or a person over fifteen, may be adopted where custom permits (section 10 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act).
- Members of Scheduled Tribes remain governed by their customs unless the Acts are notified for them.
The requirements at a glance
| Requirement | What it means | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Ancient | Of long standing | Hurpurshad v. Sheo Dyal |
| Continuous | Followed without a break | Section 3(a) |
| Requirement | What it means | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Uniform, invariable | Followed the same way | Ramalakshmi Ammal v. Sivanantha Perumal Sethurayar |
| Certain | Definite in its terms | Section 3(a), first proviso |
| Reasonable | Not unreasonable | Section 3(a), first proviso |
| Lawful | Not against public policy or morality | Section 3(a), first proviso |
| Consistent with statute | Gives way to the Acts unless saved | Section 4 |
| Not discontinued | For a family custom | Section 3(a), second proviso |
| Strictly proved | Burden on the person relying on it | Saraswathi Ammal v. Jagadambal |
Conclusion. Custom is a rule followed continuously and uniformly for a long time. It has obtained the force of law in an area, a community or a family. To be valid it must be ancient, continuous, invariable, certain and reasonable. It must not offend public policy, morality or statute, and a family custom must not have been abandoned. The person relying on it must prove it strictly, unless repeated judicial recognition allows judicial notice, as Ujagar Singh explains. Once proved, custom could override even the texts. Today it gives way to the codifying Acts, except where they expressly keep it alive.
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