A common family or an undivided family is an extensive family arrangement prevailing throughout the Indian subcontinent, particularly in India, which consists of many generations living in the same household, all bound by the common relationship.
Historically, for generations, India had a prevailing tradition of the common family system or the undivided family. The system is an extended family arrangement prevalent throughout the Indian subcontinent, particularly in India, which consists of many generations living in the same household, all linked by the common relationship. A common patrilineal family consists of an elderly man and his wife, their sons and daughters, and their grandchildren of their sons and daughters.
The family is headed by an older person called Karta, usually the oldest man, who makes decisions on economic and social issues on behalf of the whole family. The patriarch's wife usually exercises control over the house and minor religious practices and often exerts considerable influence on domestic affairs. Family income flows into a common pool, from which resources are drawn to meet the needs of all members, who are regulated by heads of households. However, with urbanization and economic development, India has witnessed a rupture of the traditional common family in more nuclear families, and the traditional common family in India accounted for a small number of Indian households.
An undivided Hindu family or HUF is a legal term related to the Hindu Marriage Act. Female members are also given the right to share property in the HUF. The term is referred to in the provisions of the Income Tax Law, but the expression is not defined in the law. There are several aspects of Hindu law relevant for assessing the purpose of income and wealth in HUF status, as well as the impact of the provisions of the Hindu Succession Act 1956, as amended by the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, Of 2005 relevant to the effects of Income and wealth assessment on HUF status under the Income Tax Act of 1961.
In the case of Surjit lal Chhabra 101 ITR 776 SC, the common family and the undivided family are synonymous: "A common Hindu family consists of persons descended linearly from a common ancestor and include their single wives and daughters. Her father and become a member of her husband's family. "In 2016, a ruling by the Delhi Supreme Court ruled that the senior woman of an Undivided Hindu Family may be her" karta "(manager).