Mizo woman moves Supreme Court claiming new marriage law discriminates against Mizo women who marry non-Mizos

A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the Mizo Marriage and Inheritance of Property (Amendment) Act, 2026..As per the plea, the amendment discriminates against Mizo women who marry non-Mizo men. It claims that such women are excluded from the legal framework governing marriage, divorce and inheritance in Mizoram..The petition has been filed by Lalsangliani Colney, a Mizo woman married a non-Mizo man in 1984. According to the petition, the amendment directly affects her, her daughter, grandchildren and all Mizo women who marry non-Mizo men..The plea has challenged amendments to Sections 2, 3(m), 25 and 26(1) of the Mizo Marriage, Divorce and Inheritance of Property Act, 2014.Under the 2014 Act, the law applied to any person belonging to a Mizo tribe. It also applied to marriages where the male member belonged to a Mizo tribe.The 2026 amendment changed this..The amended law now applies only to marriages where both parties belong to a Mizo tribe or where the male member belongs to a Mizo tribe.The petitioner says this creates a clear distinction between Mizo men and Mizo women.A Mizo man who marries a non-Mizo woman continues to be covered by the Act but a Mizo woman who marries a non-Mizo man is excluded from it.The plea says this makes a woman’s legal rights depend on the identity of her husband..Hence, the amendment is discriminatory, arbitrary and violative of Articles 14 (right to equality), 15 (right against discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex) and 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Constitution, it has been contended.The petition has also challenged the amended definition of “Mizo”.The 2014 Act defined “Mizo” to include persons who were Mizo by birth, adopted minor children and persons accepted as Mizo by society and the community at large.However, according to the petitioner, the amended law gives primacy to paternal lineage..The amendment weakens the independent identity of Mizo women and also affects children born to Mizo women who marry non-Mizo men, it has been contended.As per the petition, children born to Mizo men in inter-community marriages continue to be recognised under the law but children born to Mizo women married to non-Mizo men may be denied the same recognition.The impact of the same is not limited to marriage or divorce but it also affects inheritance, landholding and property rights of Mizo women..This is significant because land and community rights in Mizoram are closely linked to tribal identity, the petitioner has argued.The petitioner has also objected to changes in property protections for women.While the earlier law protected a woman’s personal property, the 2026 amendment has done away with this safeguard, the plea states..Thus, the amendment discourages Mizo women from marrying outside the community since the law attaches adverse legal consequences to their choice of spouse..The petition has been filed through advocate Pulkit Agarwal. Advocates Helen Lalthanpari and Prerak Khurana are the drafting counsels.