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Section 5: Adoptions to be regulated by this Chapter

Hindu Adoptions & Maintenance • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1956
Section 4 All 30 Sections of Hindu Adoptions & Maintenance Section 6

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 5

Section 5 mandates that all adoptions made after the commencement of the Act must strictly comply with Chapter II of HAMA, declaring that any adoption made in contravention of the Act is void ab initio.

  • Mandatory Statutory Compliance: No adoption shall be made after the commencement of this Act by or to a Hindu except in accordance with the provisions contained in Chapter II.
  • Absolute Nullity for Violation: Any adoption made in contravention of the provisions of Chapter II shall be void ab initio.
  • Legal Consequences of Void Adoption: A void adoption confers no rights in the adoptive family on the adopted child and does not extinguish the child's rights in the family of birth.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • M. Vanaja v. M. Sarla Devi (2020) 5 SCC 307: The Supreme Court held that the mandatory character of Section 5 requires strict proof of both the capacity to take and give in adoption, and the actual ceremony of physical giving and taking; absent these, the adoption is void.
  • Ghurpatia v. Chandreshwar Prasad (1993) 3 SCC 451: Affirmed that an adoption in contravention of statutory conditions creates no legal status; no degree of acquiescence or passage of time can validate a void adoption under Section 5.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

In partition or title suits where the opposite party claims inheritance on the basis of an alleged adoption, scrutinize the adoption under Section 5. If statutory consent of the spouse or physical ceremony of giving and taking is missing, the adoption is void under Section 5.

Section 4 All 30 Sections of Hindu Adoptions & Maintenance Section 6