Revanasiddappa & Another vs. Mallikarjun & Others (2011) 11 SCC 1-A case comment

In all systems of jurisprudence, the legitimacy of a child is determined by the validity of marriage of which he or she is born. Hindu law makes a distinction between children of three categories on the basis of legality of cohabitation between their mother and father. They are children of legally wedded marriage, children of void and annulled voidable marriage and children of no marriage and the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 places them in a hierarchy in the scale of legal entitlements to ‘coparcenery ’property rights. While the scope of legal entitlements of legitimate and illegitimate children is well settled, that of children of void and annulled voidable marriages often becomes the subject matter of judicial scrutiny by the courts, which differ in their interpretations calling for legislative clarity through amendments to the existing legislations. The present case titled 'Revanasiddappa & Another Vs. Mallikarjun & Others (2011) 11 SCC 1 ’has been selected by the author to make a case comment as the decision of the case further needs reconsideration by a larger bench of the Apex Court.