KSLU Solved Question Papers
Family Law I (Hindu Law)
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 5
2025 Jun Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 5 Family Law I (Hindu Law) 2025 Jun 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 Jun 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 Jun 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 80 · 20 questions answered
Instructions printed on the paper
- N.B. (1) Answer all 5 questions. (2) One essay type question and short note/problem is compulsory from each Unit. (3) Figures to the right indicate marks. (4) Answer should be written either in English or Kannada completely.
How to use this volume
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.
Q1
Unit I
(a)Explain the ancient sources of Hindu Law.[10]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the four ancient sources and their order of authority: Sruti (the Vedas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads; little law, but some), Smriti (Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras), the commentaries and digests (Mitakshara, Dayabhaga and the works of each sub-school), and custom (sadachara); the place of the epics and Puranas; how conflicts among them were resolved, and why custom proved strongest (Collector of Madura; Hurpurshad on what custom is); the schools as the product of the commentaries (Sukhram); the place of the ancient sources today; a conclusion.
The idea of an ancient source
The ancient sources of Hindu law are those the classical system itself recognised. Manu lists the Vedas, the Smritis, the conduct of the virtuous, and what satisfies one's conscience. Writers today group them as four: Sruti, Smriti, the commentaries and digests, and custom. They were ranked, the first being the highest in theory.
1. Sruti
Sruti means "what was heard". It is believed to be revealed to the sages. It comprises the four Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva), with the Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads attached to them.
The Sruti is mainly hymns, ritual and philosophy. It contains few rules of law. But it is not silent on family matters. It refers to marriage rites, the importance of a son, and the sharing of property. Its authority lay in giving the later texts their sanction. In theory nothing could stand against it.
2. Smriti
Smriti means "what was remembered". These are the texts composed by the sages from their memory of the Sruti and the practice of the virtuous. They came in two stages.
- The Dharmasutras, in prose, such as those of Gautama, Baudhayana, Apastamba and Vasishtha.
- The Dharmashastras, in verse, of which Manu, Yajnavalkya and Narada are the most important.
The Smritis are the main written source of the law. They deal with conduct (achara), civil and criminal law and procedure (vyavahara), and penance (prayaschitta). Only vyavahara was enforced by the king's courts.
3. Commentaries and digests
The Smritis were many and often inconsistent. From about the seventh century, scholars wrote commentaries (tikas) on single Smritis and digests (nibandhas) that collected many. These works did more than explain. They adapted the old texts to the needs of their own time and region.
- The Mitakshara of Vijnaneswara, a commentary on the Yajnavalkya Smriti, written in present-day Karnataka. It is the basis of the law in most of India.
- The Dayabhaga of Jimutavahana, a digest followed in Bengal and Assam.
- Works of the sub-schools, such as the Smriti Chandrika in the south, the Vyavahara Mayukha in western India, and the Viramitrodaya in the Benares region.
The schools of Hindu law are the product of these works. Sukhram v. Gauri Shankar, AIR 1968 SC 365, records one difference that grew out of them. Under the Benares school a coparcener cannot sell his undivided interest without the consent of the others. Under the Maharashtra and Madras schools he may sell it for value.
4. Custom
Custom is the practice of a community, followed for so long that it has the force of law. The texts called it sadachara, the conduct of the virtuous. In Hurpurshad v. Sheo Dyal, (1876) LR 3 IA 259, the Privy Council described custom as a rule which, in a particular family or district, has from long usage obtained the force of law. It must be ancient, certain and reasonable.
The epics and Puranas
The Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas are sometimes added. They contain stories and moral teaching that illustrate rules of conduct. But they are not independent sources of legal rules. Courts have used them only to explain a text or a practice.
Conflicts among the sources
In theory the order was strict. Sruti prevailed over Smriti, and Smriti over custom. Where Smritis conflicted, the commentators reconciled them or chose the better view.
In practice the order was reversed at the bottom. A proved custom prevailed over the written texts. In Collector of Madura v. Moottoo Ramalinga Sathupathy, (1868) 12 MIA 397, the Zamindar of Ramnad died without a son or authority to adopt. His widow adopted a boy with the consent of his kinsmen. The Privy Council upheld the adoption under the Dravida school. It said that under the Hindu system of law, clear proof of usage will outweigh the written text of the law.
So custom, the lowest source in theory, was the strongest in practice. It explains much of the regional variety of Hindu law.
The ancient sources today
The modern sources are justice, equity and good conscience, judicial precedent, and legislation. Since 1955 legislation has replaced most of the ancient law. The Hindu Marriage Act and the Hindu Succession Act override the old texts and customs on the matters they cover. But the ancient sources still govern the joint family, partition and religious endowments, where the Acts are silent. They also explain the origin of many rules the Acts have kept.
Conclusion. The ancient sources of Hindu law are Sruti, Smriti, the commentaries and digests, and custom. The Sruti was highest in theory but held little law. The Smritis were the main written source, and the commentaries adapted them and created the schools, as Sukhram reflects. Custom, ranked last, proved strongest, because clear proof of usage outweighs the written text, as Collector of Madura holds. Legislation now governs most matters, but these sources still rule the joint family and endowments.
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