Repeals
The under mentioned provisions of the Acts and Regulations mentioned below shall be repealed in so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, namely:—
(1) Section 26 of the Bombay Regulation IV of 1827;
(2) Section 16 of the Madras Civil Courts Act, 1873 (3 of 1873);
(4) Section 3 of the Oudh Laws Act, 1876 (18 of 1876);
(5) Section 5 of the Punjab Laws Act, 1872 (4 of 1872);
(6) Section 5 of the Central Provinces Laws Act, 1875 (20 of 1875); and
(7) Section 4 of the Ajmere Laws Regulation, 1877 (3 of 1877).
In plain English
What this section actually means
Section 6 is a tidy-up clause. Before 1937, several Provincial statutes — the Bombay Regulation of 1827, the Madras Civil Courts Act of 1873, the Oudh Laws Act of 1876, the Punjab Laws Act of 1872, the Central Provinces Laws Act of 1875 and the Ajmere Laws Regulation of 1877 — each contained a provision that, in respect of personal-law disputes, directed the courts to apply 'usage' or 'custom' before personal law. Those provisions had been used over decades to apply Hindu-influenced custom to Muslim families in Punjab, Oudh, the Central Provinces and elsewhere.
Section 6 repeals each of those provisions 'in so far as they are inconsistent' with this Act. The phrase 'in so far as' is important — the repeal is partial. The Provincial statutes survive for their other subjects; only their custom-priority clauses fall.
Entry (3) of the original list was omitted by the 1943 amendment (it referred to a provision that had separately become redundant). The numbering in the source PDF therefore skips from (2) to (4).
Visual
See how it flows
Old vs new
Pre-1937 custom-first clauses now repealed
Section 6 swept away six Provincial-era directions to apply custom before personal law.
- Bombay Regulation IV of 1827Section 26
- Madras Civil Courts Act, 1873Section 16
- Oudh Laws Act, 1876Section 3
- Punjab Laws Act, 1872Section 5
- Central Provinces Laws Act, 1875Section 5
- Ajmere Laws Regulation, 1877Section 4
Real life
What this looks like in real life
Pre-1937 Punjab succession order resurrected
Setup. In a 2024 partition suit, one side relies on a pre-1937 Lahore Chief Court ruling that applied Punjab custom of male-only succession to a Muslim family.
What the law does. The Lahore ruling rested on Section 5 of the Punjab Laws Act, 1872 — which Section 6 of this Act has repealed in so far as inconsistent with the 1937 Act. The custom-priority basis is no longer law. Section 2 of the 1937 Act applies — Shariat governs, and the female heirs take their share.
Frequently asked
Questions about Section 6
Open this section in the source PDF
Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Act, 1937.pdf
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