The Rashtrakutas and their Times c21.134

c21.134

Now let us consider the position of women. We have seen already how widows and daughters were recognised as heirs. The *Strīdhana* rights, we may presume, were also recognised. They have been conceded in the Hindu society since very early times and even the Smriti writers, who refuse to recognise the widow as an heir, permit women to have undisputed proprietary rights over certain varieties of *Strīdhana* property.¹⁰⁶ A 12th century record from Kolhapur seems to refer to the case of a daughter selling landed property.¹⁰⁷ The record is unfortunately fragmentary and so we do not know whether the land that was sold by this lady was sold with the consent of the reversioners, or whether it was a piece of property that had devolved upon her as a daughter or as a widow. In any case the record shows that the women in the Deccan could sell landed property under certain circumstances.