Section 6 HAMA: Requisites of a valid adoption

Section 6 of Hindu Adoptions & Maintenance: Requisites of a valid adoption

Official Bare Act Text

Override / Mandate Mens Rea (Intent) Actus Reus (Conduct) Punishment Limitation Monetary

No adoption shall be valid unless—

(i) the person adopting has the capacity, and also the right, to take in adoption;

(ii) the person giving in adoption has the capacity to do so;

(iii) the person adopted is capable of being taken in adoption; and

(iv) the adoption is made in compliance with the other conditions mentioned in this Chapter.

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 6

Section 6 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956 sets forth the four mandatory requisites for a valid Hindu adoption.

Core Legal Standard: Under Section 6 of HAMA, the four statutory requisites for a valid adoption—capacity of the adopter, capability of the giver, eligibility of the child, and statutory compliance—are mandatory and cumulative.
Operational Application: Mandatory; failure to satisfy even one renders the adoption void ab initio under Section 5(1).

This statutory framework establishes clear operational guidelines, balancing legal compliance with procedural safeguards.

Key Landmark Precedents:

Laxman Singh Kothari v. Bapu Kanwar (AIR 1961 SC 1378): The Supreme Court authoritatively held that under Hindu law, the essential ceremony for a valid adoption is the actual physical giving and receiving of the child (datta homam may not be essential, but physical delivery is indispensable). No valid adoption can be established without proof of the physical act of giving and taking.
Devgonda Patil v. Shamgonda Patil (AIR 1992 Bom 189): The Bombay High Court held that the requirements of Section 6 are mandatory. An adoption conducted without the consent of the wife under Section 7 or without satisfying the age difference under Section 11 is void ab initio and confers no inheritance rights.
Kashibai v. Parvatibai (1995) 6 SCC 213: The Supreme Court affirmed that the burden of proving a valid adoption lies strictly on the person claiming adoption, who must produce cogent, consistent, and convincing evidence proving each of the requisites under Section 6.

Legal Commentary:

Section 6 is the gateway to lawful adoption under Hindu personal law. While CARA (Central Adoption Resource Authority) regulations govern institutional adoptions under the Juvenile Justice Act, familial and relative adoptions between Hindus continue to be solemnized under HAMA. Rigorous compliance with Section 6, supported by a registered adoption deed under Section 16, is essential to withstand inheritance challenges in partition suits.

Section 6: Requisites of a valid adoption

Section 6 of Hindu Adoptions & Maintenance: Requisites of a valid adoption

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 6