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Section 20: Rights and disabilities not affected by Act

Special Marriage Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1954
Section 19 All 51 Sections of Special Marriage Act Section 21

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 20

Section 20 protects and guarantees the inheritance and property rights of children born to parties whose marriage is celebrated in other forms and subsequently registered under Chapter III of the Special Marriage Act.

  • Protection of Prior Born Children: Explicitly safeguards the rights of children born before the date of registration under Chapter III, preserving their status and legitimacy.
  • Inheritance Rights: Guarantees that children of registered marriages inherit property from their parents under statutory succession laws without discrimination.
  • Harmonization with Section 26: Operates in tandem with Section 26 to ensure that children of void or voidable civil marriages are treated as legitimate for succession to parents' property.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Revanasiddappa v. Mallikarjun (2023) 10 SCC 1: The 3-Judge Bench held that children of marriages deemed valid or saved by statutory legitimacy provisions are entitled to inherit the parents' share in both self-acquired and coparcenary ancestral property.
  • Parayan Kandiyal Eravath v. K. Devi (1996) 4 SCC 76: The Supreme Court underscored that legislative provisions protecting the legitimacy of children in non-conventional marriages must be given broad, beneficial interpretation.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

In partition or succession suits where coparceners challenge the inheritance rights of children born prior to civil registration under Chapter III, cite Section 20 and Revanasiddappa to defeat any claim of illegitimacy.

Section 19 All 51 Sections of Special Marriage Act Section 21