AMIREDDI RAJAGOPALA RAO AND OTHERS vs AMIREDDI SITHARAMAMMA AND OTHERS

The Supreme Court held that the respondents, children of a Brahmin woman and a Sudra man, were entitled to maintenance from the estate of their father under Hindu Law as it existed before the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956. The Court clarified that illegitimate children of a Sudra are entitled to maintenance regardless of the mother's status as a Dasi, and a married woman living with a paramour can claim maintenance as an Avaruddha Stree. The provisions of the 1956 Act do not have retrospective effect to adversely affect the respondents' rights, which vested before the Act's commencement.