The Khasi Tribe: A Matrilineal Community of India

The right to property is often referred to as a natural human right, concurring with this, the Government of India empowered the Indian citizens with the fundamental right to property under Article 31 of the Indian Constitution. However, in 1978 due to various controversies, the Indian government eradicated Article 31 and reinserted this right as a constitutional right under Article 300A of the Constitution. When discussing property, one of the concepts that cross our minds is inheritance and succession which gives us the right to inherit property from our ancestors. Inheritance interchangeably used with succession is defined as the devolution of property on an heir or heirs upon the death of the owner of such property which is regulated by law in contemporary times. Interestingly the inheritance and succession laws fall under family/personal law, therefore the rules of inheritance and succession differ for different communities.

Inheritance and Succession Laws in India

India is a diverse country with multiple religions, cultures, traditions, and customs. This diversity is also found in the inheritance and succession laws of Indians. The Hindus have the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, Muslims have the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, Christians and Parsis are governed under the Indian Succession Act, 1925, and so on. The inheritance and property law not only differs according to religion but also geographically like Goa has the Goa Succession, Special Notaries and Inventory Proceeding Act, 2012. With so much diversity, there is one thing common in most of these laws, which is the patrilineal nature of these laws. Although most of them are adapting to the needs of contemporary society, their origin takes us back to a patriarchal society. But it cannot be said that all inheritance and succession laws are that way, some laws have a matrilineal origin. One such community which is said to be matrilineal is the Khasi community.

Background of the Khasi Community

Khasi is an ethnic group in the eastern part of Meghalaya famously known for their inheritance and succession customs. The Khasis have a matrilineal society, their descent is traced through the mother of the family and goes to the youngest daughter of the family. David Roy in his book, Layers of History Essays on the Khasi-Jaintias, writes “a man is the defender of the woman, but the woman is the keeper of his trust” while describing the Khasi people. The Khasis have a unique culture when compared to the rest of India, their inheritance of property and succession to a tribal office runs through the female line. But the question is whether the Khasi community is as matriarchal as it seems to be? In this essay, I will be critically analyzing the Khasi community’s inheritance and succession customary laws along with a Bill that was introduced in relation to the Khasi inheritance law with an objective to put a full stop to their inheritance customs.

Inheritance and Succession Customs of the Khasis

In a ‘matrilineal society’ lineage or descent is traced back to the mother, and offspring inherit the mother’s family name. After marriage, the married couple’s place of residence becomes matrilocal and gives the right to inherit property only to the daughters of the family. The central core of iing (home), Khasi’s most important functional unit is made up of two individuals, i.e., one who has the power to make decisions related to the ancestral property and the other who owns the ancestral property. Among these two individuals, the matrilineal rule governs succession. The family’s ancestral property is passed down from the mother to the youngest daughter who is known as the Khatduh. The Khatduh becomes the custodian of the land and takes all the responsibilities of the family, such as taking care of aged parents, unmarried or destitute siblings. Whereas the decision-making power is passed down from the maternal uncle of the Khatduh to her brother. Therefore, the financial management of the property is in the hands of men although the property owners are women. According to the Khasi customs, women look after their home, the men find the means to support their family, and the maternal uncle takes care of the social and religious matters.

Although the youngest daughter receives the ancestral property, the decision-making power related to the property stays with her maternal uncle. Succession to positions of leadership is usually determined by seniority, but one's skills and place of residence are also considered. If the family has adequate finances, the other daughters may also inherit a piece of the ancestral property. Self-acquired property may be inherited by the son in the absence of a female successor, but the ancestral property must go to the nearest matrilineal kin. In such instances, a daughter from the next matrilineal descent group may be adopted. If there is no ancestral property, the iing becomes extinct, and the self-acquired property eventually passes to the son’s wife and children, resulting in an iing of a completely different type. If all of the family members die except for a male, the male inherits, a part of the youngest daughter’s ancestral property. If the property has been divided and all of the females in a stock owning a distinct part die, the surviving male inherits the property. The primary rule for inheritance by males is that the brother takes precedence over the son.

However, in the traditional system, if a Khasi couple does not have any daughters, then the property goes to the wife’s elder sister and daughters and if the wife does not have sisters, then the clan usual takes over the property. Now when observed although the Khasi community follows the matrilineal system, it cannot be said to be a matriarchal society. Even though the youngest daughter inherits the property, she cannot make any decisions related to the property without the consent of her maternal uncle. Moving on, the Khasi tribes, especially the men were not satisfied with this system of inheritance laws, which led to the introduction of the Khasi Inheritance of Property Bill, 2021.

The Khasi Inheritance of Property Bill, 2021

In November 2021, the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC), an autonomous body under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, introduced the Khasi Inheritance of Property Bill, 2021 in its autumn session. The Bill primarily aims to achieve “equitable distribution” of parental property among siblings, both male and female in the Khasi community and modify the age-old customary practice of inheritance of the matrilineal Khasi tribe. Under this Bill, the parents can choose who they want to will their property to. It also prevents a sibling from getting parental property if they marry a non-Khasi person and accept the spouse’s customs and culture. For many years the Khasi men had to face various disadvantages due to the matrilineal system. KHADC chief Titosstarwell Chyne says, “Many times, boys are not able to take loans because there is no collateral to show. Sometimes, when a couple has no children, and there is no genuine heir, the clan takes over the property, as per custom. It leads to several litigations by children against their parents”. This new Bill if implemented would solve a plethora of problems for Khasi men and establish equality in the inheritance laws, at the same time it would bring the age-old matrilineal inheritance custom of the Khasi community to an end. The Khasi Inheritance of Property Bill, 2021 was not welcomed by everyone, especially the Khasi women. However this Bill gives the impression of promoting amongst men and women, but it still requires a better structure to eradicate confusion.