Cutchi Memons Act, 1938

The Cutchi Memons Act, 1938 (Act X of 1938) governs succession and inheritance for the Cutchi Memon community. Section 1 says it came into force on 1 November 1938.

Section 2 is the key provision: subject to Section 3, all Cutchi Memons are to be governed in matters of succession and inheritance by Muslim law (the extract shows this term was substituted for an earlier word by a 1975 adaptation order). This effectively brought the community's inheritance rules under Islamic law rather than any customary or other personal law that may have applied before.

Section 3 is a saving clause: the Act does not disturb rights or liabilities that had already accrued, or legal proceedings or remedies already underway, before the Act came into force — those could continue as if the Act had never been passed.

Section 4, originally providing for repeal of some prior law, was itself repealed by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1942, as noted in the extract's footnote. Given its age and the amendment history, readers dealing with Cutchi Memon inheritance matters today should check the current, consolidated text and any related family law statutes.