What is difference between coparcenar vs member of HUF ???

A coparcener is a person who acquires a right in the ancestral property by birth and a person who has a right to demand partition in the HUF property.

Under Hindu law, it has also been said that the male members upto three lineal descendants are coparceners meaning a family consisting of father, his son, son’s son and son’s grandson are coparceners in the Hindu property. The genesis of coparcenary thus is a common male ancestor with his lineal descendants in the male line within three degrees excluding him e.g. his son, son’s son and son’s grandson. This genesis is so long as the male ancestor is alive and after his death, the three degrees can consist of collateral such as brothers, uncles, nephews and cousins etc. This position is subject to the amendments made by Hindu succession (amendment) Act, 2005 whereby even daughters have been included within the term coparceners and all references to son shall equally apply to daughters also.

Any member other than the above who were not entitled to right in the HUF property by birth or who did not have a right to demand partition were simply members who had a right of maintenance out of the hindu family property.

A HUF, as such, can consist of a very large number of members including female members (w.e.f. 9th September, 2005, whether married or unmarried) as well as distant blood relatives in the male line. However, out of this, coparceners are only those males who are within 4 degrees in lineal descendent from the common male ancestor and including the common ancestor and the daughter of the common ancestor.

The relevance of concept of coparcener is that only coparceners can ask for partition. The other male family members; i.e, other than coparceners in a HUF, have no direct claim over HUF property, but can claim only through the coparceners. The coparcener must be a member of the family but a member of the family need not be a coparcener.

A Coparcener is a member of HUF who can claim partition whereas a Member cannot claim partition. This is the basic difference between the Coparcener and the Member. Thus it follows that all the coparceners are members of HUF but the vice versa is not true. Wife cannot claim a partition, but if there is a partition between her husband and children, she gets equal share. A widow steps in the shoes of her deceased husband and can claim partition.