Talaq-e-Hasan, like Triple Talaq, should go, say petitioners.
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to take up the issue of the validity of “Talaq-e-Hasan”, an extra-judicial form of divorce under Muslim personal law. “Talaq-e-Hasan” is a practice under which a Muslim man can unilaterally divorce his wife by pronouncing talaq, either orally or in writing, three times with a gap of one month between two consecutive pronouncements.
When a few petitions led by one Benazeer Heena and others—who had approached the Supreme Court after being divorced via mobile phone, speed post, and even by authorised divorce letters from their husbands—came up before a bench of CJI D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices P.S. Narasimha and J.B. Pardiwala, it said, “These appear to be squarely challenging the constitutionality of the mode of divorce. We need to set them up for detailed hearing.”
The petition by Benazeer Heena and others said: “Thanks mainly to the judiciary and the Constitution of India, the horrendous ‘Triple Talaq’ (Talaq-e-Bidat) has been abolished, which used to happen after the devilish word, ‘Talaq,’ was uttered in a single sitting, three times. Both the Houses of the Indian Parliament are to be thanked for that. It will save an umpteen number of houses from being deserted.”
“Let ‘Talaq-e-Hasan/Talaq-e-Husna/Talaq-e-Ahsan’ be abolished: It is high time and the seething need of the hour is that this demonising ‘Talaq-e-Hasan/Talaq-e-Husna/Talaq-e-Ahsan’ is abolished like the all-damaging and horrific ‘Triple Talaq’ (Talaq-e-Bidat). It results in annihilating the already jeopardised existence of the troubled Muslim women. It reduces them to helpless and penniless paupers with no food, roofs above their heads, no education for their kids, and in fact, no basic requirement for daily life! In most cases, the poor women are left to fend for themselves as their relatives too ignore them,” the petition reads.
“Whether ‘Talaq-e-Hasan’, ‘Talaq-e-Husna’, or ‘Talaq-e-Ahsan’, all these three mean divorcing and shunting out the already poor, cajoled, and beleaguered Muslim woman on the road in a span of three months, with the atrocious word, ‘Talaq,’ uttered each of the three months once,” the petition further reads.
“Let me vouch that nobody, not only Muslim women but even men, will not crib and cry if the abolishment is declared on the heinous ‘Talaq-e-Hasan’ as this will be in the interest of the Muslim community and humanity. Only those who have a vested interest or are illegally and unconstitutionally funded by certain platforms from abroad to destabilise India will object. When ‘Triple Talaq’ (Talaq-e-Bidat) was abolished, no Muslim man or woman took to the streets (except a belligerent and negligible minority) as most men too sided with the ban on ‘Triple Talaq,’ since this diabolic act turns a Muslim woman into a living corpse or what they call in Urdu, ‘zinda laash’. More men favoured the abolishment of ‘Triple Talaq’ (Talaq-e-Bidat) because they too suffer inconsolably if their daughter or sister is inflicted with it. However, those men who misused ‘Triple Talaq’ (Talaq-e-Bidat) for the satisfaction of their libidinous or carnal desires via polygamy were against it and termed the legal ban as interference in ‘Sharia’ law, which, by all means, it is not, as many verses in the holy scripture of the Quran are against any form of ‘Talaq’. By the way, in any case, if separation is inevitable and the only way out, the law may chart out a route for that too, keeping in mind that it’s the best conglomerate representation of both, the religious (Sharia) as well as the legal,” the petition reads.
“Islam is absolutely against all forms of separation and asks its followers for parity and mutual harmony and understanding among married couples at all costs, come what may. It is submitted that the practice of ‘Talaq-E-Hasan/ Talaq-e-Husna/, Talaq-e-Ahsan’ and other forms of unilateral extra-judicial forms of ‘Talaq’ are neither harmonious with the modern principles of human rights, gender justice, and gender equality nor an integral part of the Islamic faith. Further, it is pertinent to mention that according to Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), the most heinous and horrendous act/crime in the eyes of Allah is ‘Talaq’,” the petition further reads.