New Delhi: Union Law Minister Arun Jaitley on June 3 stressed the need for accelerating reforms in personal laws to remove the aberrations coming in the way of empowerment of the fair sex.

"There is a need for reforms in personal laws and the movement of past in this regard requires to be accelerated," Jaitley said, inaugurating a seminar on 'Women's Property Rights: A Gender Perspective'.

He said despite conservative sections within each community, there had been changes in the personal laws barring the Islamic law. "We are unable to take out aberrations in the Islamic law," Jaitley said.

Stating that the amendment of laws relating to religion was a tough process, he said the first step should be to remove the aberrations in the Hindu law, which would serve as an example for the minority community.

Referring to reforms in the Christian law relating to property rights of women, the minister said it was now at par with the common marriage law and should be taken as a textbook to study the changes required in other personal laws.

Maintaining that women with property and assets would have a lot more dignity, Jaitley said the element of economic empowerment will ensure that social oppression ends.

PTI