The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Central Government seeking its response on a PIL that challenges the constitutional validity of uncodified rules governing inheritance under Muslim personal law. The petition argues that these unwritten customary rules, which are not codified in any statute, violate fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The court's decision to issue notice signals that the PIL clears the threshold of prima facie maintainability and merits a formal government reply.

This PIL touches three intersecting legal domains tested heavily in CLAT PG: PIL maintainability, gender equality, and the constitutional status of personal laws.

First, PIL maintainability. The Supreme Court applies a two-stage filter: (i) does the petitioner have a bona fide public interest beyond that of an 'officious intervener,' and (ii) is the issue justiciable? The court's decision to issue notice here means it is satisfied — at least prima facie — that both conditions are met.

Second, the constitutional challenge to personal laws. Muslim inheritance law in India is largely governed by classical Islamic jurisprudence (Hanafi, Shia, etc.) and is not codified in a single statute the way Hindu succession is governed by the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. The PIL argues that uncodified rules — applied by courts through judge-made recognition — cannot escape constitutional scrutiny under Articles 14 (equality), 15 (non-discrimination), and 21 (dignity).

Third, gender equality. Muslim personal law on inheritance has long been critiqued for giving female heirs half the share of male heirs in equivalent positions. Courts have tested whether personal law is 'law' under Article 13 and therefore subject to Part III. The Supreme Court in Shayara Bano (Triple Talaq, 2017) held that a personal law practice can be struck down if it violates fundamental rights, opening the door for challenges like this one.

The examiner is interested in whether the aspirant can identify: what makes a PIL maintainable, what the constitutional basis of challenge to personal law is, and which test the court uses to admit such challenges.