Author – Devanshe Nigam
College – Dr. K.N.K. Law College , Ratlam (M.P.)
Introduction: Decoding the Legal Dependence on Marriage for Women’s Social Security
In India, marriage continues to be legally and socially portrayed as the primary source of security for women. Family laws across various religions often tie a woman’s rights , whether related to maintenance, property, or social status to her marital status. Provisions under laws like Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 predominantly focus on women’s protection within the framework of marriage. However, this legal structure ignores women who choose to remain unmarried or those seeking independence outside marriage.
As women’s roles evolve, there is an urgent need to reassess laws that reinforce marriage as a woman’s only safety net. The question arises that shouldn’t legal systems equally protect women’s autonomy, irrespective of marital ties?
Marriage-Centric Family Laws: A Barrier to Women’s Individual Empowerment
In India, a woman’s legal protection often revolves around her marital status, which limits her independence. Laws like Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 allow a wife to claim maintenance from her husband but do not cover unmarried women unless they are dependent family members.
Similarly, rights related to ancestral property under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 were unclear until the Supreme Court clarified them in Vineeta Sharma v. Rakesh Sharma (2020), granting daughters equal rights in family property regardless of their marital status.
Despite such progress, several laws still view marriage as the basis for social and financial security. This approach sidelines unmarried women and reinforces the belief that marriage is essential for a woman’s legal and social protection.
Why Indian Legal Systems Still Prioritize Marriage Over Women’s Independence
In many Indian communities, it is traditionally believed that women must rely on male family members throughout their lives. First on their fathers during childhood, then on brothers during early adulthood, followed by husbands after marriage, and later on sons in old age. This social belief is deeply rooted and has influenced Indian laws, which often connect a woman’s rights with her marital status.
Family laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 mainly address marital relationships, sidelining the concept of women’s legal autonomy. For instance, the financial assistance allowed under Section 24 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 can only be claimed by spouses engaged in legal separation or divorce cases, excluding women outside the marital framework. This legal approach often discourages women’s independent financial identity.
The Inheritance Trap: How Property Rights Remain Tied to Marital Status
Despite legal reforms, a woman’s right to property in India still faces several challenges, often being closely connected to her marital status. Though the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 recognized daughters as equal coparceners in joint family property, in practice, many women are still denied their rightful inheritance due to social and familial pressures.
Often, families insist that a woman will eventually be ‘secured’ through marriage, leading them to waive property rights in favour of male heirs. The law also overlooks unmarried women and widows when it comes to proactive property protection mechanisms.
This reinforces the belief that a woman’s future must revolve around marriage for financial stability. However, it is crucial to challenge this mindset and recognize that women have aspirations, identities, and rights beyond the traditional boundaries of marriage and the mandap.
Government Policies and Legal Frameworks That Indirectly Push Women Towards Marriage
Several government schemes and legal provisions unintentionally promote marriage as the ultimate security for women. Initiatives like the Kanyadaan Yojana and Mukhyamantri Kanya Vivah Yojana offer financial incentives to families for their daughters’ marriage, reinforcing the idea that marriage ensures a woman’s wellbeing.
Similarly, benefits under certain social welfare schemes often prioritize married women or widows, sidelining unmarried women. Moreover, tax laws and housing schemes frequently extend benefits to women within marital relationships, leaving out independent women from similar assistance.
This reflects a policy-level approach where women’s social and economic protection is seen through the lens of marriage. Such measures, though well-intended, limit women’s personal choices and discourage their pursuit of education, employment, and independent living beyond the institution of marriage.
Maintenance and Alimony Laws: Creating Legal Dependency, Not Freedom
In India, maintenance and alimony laws largely revolve around the marital bond, placing women’s financial protection within the framework of marriage. Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 permits a woman to seek maintenance from her husband after separation or divorce, but this option is unavailable to women who have never been married.
Likewise, under Section 25 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, financial assistance is provided only to individuals who have been legally married and are undergoing or have completed divorce proceedings. While these laws intend to offer support, they often result in long-term dependency, discouraging women from becoming financially independent.
This creates a system where women are expected to seek economic security through marital ties, instead of empowering them to lead self-reliant lives.
Single Unmarried Women: Ignored by Social Welfare Legislation
Indian social welfare laws often overlook the needs of single, unmarried women. Most legal provisions are designed to benefit women within marriage, such as schemes for widows, divorced women, or married women facing domestic abuse. Unmarried women, whether by choice or circumstance, rarely receive attention in social security frameworks.
Many government schemes for housing, pensions, or financial assistance automatically assume marital status as a qualifying factor. This leaves unmarried women without adequate legal protection or access to welfare benefits, despite facing challenges such as unemployment, poverty, or old age without family support.
By excluding this group, the law perpetuates the belief that marriage is a prerequisite for financial stability, denying women the right to a secure, independent life outside of traditional marital relationships.
Breaking the Myth: Marriage Is Not a Prerequisite for Social Security
It is essential to challenge the deep-rooted belief that marriage is the only path to social and financial security for women. Many women today choose to remain unmarried to focus on their careers, education, or personal growth, yet laws and policies still fail to acknowledge their choices.
Even in today’s generation, many girls are raised to dream of marriage—but why must this be the ultimate goal? Why can’t women simply be daughters of their own homes, living independently without needing marital status to gain respect or security? Legal systems often promote the idea that women require marital ties for protection, ignoring the fact that many unmarried women successfully manage businesses, households, and personal lives. Reforms must ensure equal protection for all women, breaking this outdated dependency on marriage.
The Harsh Reality: Marriage Often Traps Women in Unpaid Domestic Roles
Marriage is often glorified as a dream, where women hope for a respectful, caring partner. Many girls grow up fantasizing about an ideal husband who will treat them with kindness and dignity. However, reality frequently tells a different story. Many married women end up taking on endless household duties like cooking, cleaning, and managing the family without any appreciation or compensation.
Society still questions housewives with remarks like, “Don’t you just stay at home all day?” Such comments dismiss the constant effort, pressure, and exhaustion women face every day. In many cases, women also encounter humiliation, neglect, or even abuse within their marriages.
This raises an important question—why is marriage seen as a necessary goal for women? Marriage is not just a celebration; it can have long-lasting personal, emotional, and social consequences .
Redefining Security: Why Must Women Marry for Protection?
The Indian Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to equality (Article 14) and freedom to choose their way of life (Article 21). Yet, society often teaches girls that marriage is the only route to security. Why must a woman marry to feel safe?
Should protection come only by tying her future to a man? Many women today challenge this idea. For example, activist Laxmi Agarwal, a survivor of acid violence, chose not to marry and instead built her own identity as a campaigner for women’s rights. Her story shows that security comes from self-respect, education, and financial independence , not from marriage. Security is not a privilege a husband grants; it is a right every woman inherently holds.
Empowering Women Through Legal Reforms: From Marital Dependency to Self-Reliance
To truly empower women, Indian laws must shift focus from marital dependency to encouraging self-reliance. Existing family laws often center around a woman’s role as a wife or widow, ignoring her individual rights outside marriage.
Legal reforms should promote women’s access to property, education, employment, and social welfare irrespective of marital status. Laws must ensure that unmarried women, single mothers, and women living independently receive equal protection under property, inheritance, and financial schemes.
Additionally, there is a strong need to introduce policies that encourage entrepreneurship, vocational training, and independent housing for women. Moving beyond the outdated notion that marriage is a woman’s only source of security, legal systems must embrace women’s right to lead independent, self-sufficient lives, with equal dignity and opportunity under the law.
Towards Inclusive Laws: Expanding Social Security Beyond Marital Status
Creating inclusive laws that extend social security beyond marriage is essential for true gender justice. Currently, many welfare schemes, pension benefits, and property rights focus primarily on women who are married, divorced, or widowed, leaving unmarried women and those choosing alternative lifestyles without adequate legal support. To address this imbalance, social security laws must be revised to cover every woman, regardless of her marital status.
Government policies should provide equal access to housing schemes, health benefits, education funds, and pension programs for all women, including those who remain unmarried by choice. Expanding legal protection in this manner will help dismantle the long-standing belief that marriage is essential for a woman’s survival. Inclusive laws must recognize women as independent citizens.
Why Child Marriage is Prohibited Yet Permissible?
Conclusion
It is time to question the long-standing narrative that ties a woman’s security, respect, and identity solely to marriage. Laws and policies must stop viewing women through the lens of marital status and instead recognize them as independent individuals with full rights under the Constitution.
True empowerment begins when women are valued not for their roles as wives or daughters-in-law, but as citizens with equal legal standing. Marriage should be a personal choice , not a legal requirement for dignity or survival. The law must evolve to ask not “Whose wife or daughter is she?” but rather, “What rights does she hold as an individual?”
Social security must belong to women by virtue of their humanity, not their marital ties.
Reference
Women and Law in India : An omnibus – Flavia Agnes and Neera Desai.
Feminism and Nationalism in the 3rd world – Kumari Jayawardena.
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