Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ Politics / Policy/  Triple talaq to be examined within framework of Constitution: Supreme Court
BackBack

Triple talaq to be examined within framework of Constitution: Supreme Court

Supreme Court asked the Union government to weigh in on the debate as to whether intervening in the law would violate the Muslim community's fundamental rights

The Indian constitution allows Muslims, the biggest religious minority group, to regulate matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance through their own civil code. Photo: MintPremium
The Indian constitution allows Muslims, the biggest religious minority group, to regulate matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance through their own civil code. Photo: Mint

New Delhi: Supreme Court said it will examine how far it could interfere in Muslim laws governing family-related issues as it heard a plea to end a practice allowing Muslim men to divorce their wives by saying “talaq" three times.

The Indian constitution allows Muslims, the biggest religious minority group, to regulate matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance through their own civil code.

A Supreme Court bench said Muslim personal law affected a large number of people and asked the federal government to weigh in on the debate as to whether intervening in the law would violate the Muslim community’s fundamental rights.

“It is a serious issue and it has to be examined within the framework of the Constitution," Chief Justice of India, Tirath Singh Thakur, said of the petition on Wednesday.

“We have to hear all of the views and take a call as to what extent courts can interfere in Muslim personal laws," he said.

The next hearing is on 6 September.

Muslims make up 13% of the country’s 1.2 billion population, yet government data show they are among some of the most excluded and marginalised communities.

Women’s rights activists have long called for reform of the Muslim personal law which they say discriminates against women. What they want instead is a well-defined law that criminalises polygamy, unilateral divorce and child marriage.

Campaigners say the “triple talaq" practice — which allows Muslim men an instant divorce with Muslim women being divorced via Facebook, Skype and text message — is unconstitutional because it violates the right to equality.

Aware of rights

The petition being considered by the Supreme Court also seeks an end to polygamy and ‘halala’, which mandates that if a woman wants to go back to her husband after a divorce, she must first consummate her marriage with another man.

“Triple talaq is not valid as per the Koran, which stresses mediation and reconciliation before the decision to divorce," said Zakia Soman, co-founder of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA), which campaigns for Muslim women’s rights and is a co-petitioner in the case.

“The Supreme Court needs to be guided by the Constitutional mandate," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

More than 90% of Muslim women surveyed by BMMA last year said they wanted an end to polygamy and triple talaq.

There are drives to end other practices as well. Some women in the Dawoodi Bohra community, the only South Asian Muslim community known to practise female genital mutilation, are calling for an end to the centuries-old custom.

In a 1985 landmark judgment, the Supreme Court granted divorcee, Shah Bano, alimony for life. But following protests from Muslim leaders and others that the court was being intrusive, the judgment was overturned.

“Thirty years after Shah Bano, Muslim women are more aware of their Koranic rights and more willing to fight for them," Soman said.

“We think the Court will strike the right balance between gender justice and the right to religious freedom," she said. Reuters

Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

Catch all the Politics News and Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
More Less
Published: 29 Jun 2016, 07:19 PM IST
Next Story footLogo
Recommended For You
Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App