A woman in Hyderabad has alleged that she was given triple talaq by her husband over the phone after she gave birth to a baby girl. The incident, which took place in the city’s Tolichowki area around three weeks ago, came to light after the woman lodged a complaint with the police and approached the media.
The accused, identified as Shareef, is said to be working as a principal in a school in Tolichowki area. Speaking to reporters, the woman said that the marriage took place on 6 January 2017 and everything was smooth for the first month.
She also claimed that she had a strong suspicion that the accused was having an affair.
“Once I returned to my parent’s house, he called me and pronounced triple talaq over the phone. Then a divorce declaration came home even though I pleaded with them not to do so. I want justice. I don’t want him to ruin another woman’s life in this manner,” the woman added.
Speaking to the media, Inspector Manjula from the Central Crime Station (CCS) said, “The woman approached us on 23 November. We offered to counsel the couple but the woman was determined that a case must be registered because she said she had undergone a lot of harassment. We registered a case and conducted an investigation.”
Instant triple talaq is interpreted as the Islamic practice of divorcing a woman by uttering the word 'talaq' thrice.
In August last year, in a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court had by a 3-2 decision struck down the centuries-old practice of instant triple talaq among Indian Muslims as unconstitutional, manifestly arbitrary and void in law. Two judges said that it should be up to the Parliament to pass a legislation bill to officially ban the practice.
In September this year, an ordinance to make triple talaq a criminal offence had been passed. Earlier this week, the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018, commonly known as the Triple Talaq Bill, was introduced in the Lok Sabha.
"The bill was brought in as per the direction of the Supreme Court to protect the rights of Muslim women. Several Muslim women suffered due to instant talaq. This bill is in the nation's interest and constitutional," Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said before introducing the bill.
The government could not pass the bill in the Rajya Sabha during the previous monsoon session.
(With inputs from IANS)
(This article was originally published on The News Minute)
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