The Karnataka High Court has highlighted a confusion in the amended Section 6 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, which deals with property rights in joint Hindu families. The court said the changes unintentionally exclude Hindu widows and mothers from direct mention, risking their rightful share in property. A Division Bench of Justice R. Devdas and Justice B. Muralidhara Pai made this observation while hearing an appeal by Sharanavva of Hirekoppa in Gadag district. The court noted, "The unamended Section 6, more particularly the first proviso, by reference to Class-1 heirs of the Schedule, ensured a share at a notional partition to a widow and mother of the deceased along with son; daughter, etc. However, the amended Section 6 does not contain reference to Class-1 heirs of the Schedule." The judges referred to a 2020 Supreme Court judgment in Vineeta Sharma Vs. Rakesh Sharma, which clarified lawmakers never intended to cut widows’ or mothers’ rights. They said, "It is by sheer inadvertence, that the other Class-1 heirs such as widow, mother, widow of predeceased son; etc., who find place in Class-1 of the Schedule and their rights flowing in terms of the unamended Section 6 have been missed out in the amended provision." The Bench also pointed out that Section 6(3) says Hindu family property should devolve under the Act and not by survivorship. But this alone does not secure widow and mother rights without explicit mention. "We therefore feel that it is the bounden duty of this Court to draw the attention of the law makers in this regard. Perhaps, a recasting of the provision, with reference to Class-1 heirs of the Schedule is necessary to avoid confusion," the court said. It directed the court registry to send this judgment copy to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs for action. This move aims to protect Hindu widows and mothers from losing their rightful shares in family property due to unclear legal language.