New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday by a majority verdict set aside the practice of divorce through triple talaq among Muslims, saying the practice was void, illegal and unconstitutional. The apex court held that the triple talaq was against the basic tenets of Quran.
“In view of the different opinions recorded by a majority of 3:2, the practice of ‘talaq-e-biddat’ – triple talaq is set aside,” a five-judge constitution bench said in a 395-page order.
Reacting to the verdict, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) said it will chalk out its future course of action on triple talaq in its working committee meeting slated on September 10 in Bhopal.
“The working committee meeting in Bhopal on September 10 will take a decision on the future course of action on today’s Supreme Court verdict after studying it in detail,” member of the Board’s working committee Zafaryab Jilani said.
Besides, other issues will also be taken up in the meeting with the verdict being the most prominent one, said Jilani, who is also a senior counsel. He said that the hearing on the Babri mosque case is also on the agenda of the Bhopal meeting. To a question, Jilani said it will not be appropriate to comment on the apex court’s decision without studying it in detail.
While Chief Justice JS Khehar and Justice S Abdul Nazeer were in favour of putting on hold for six months the practice of triple talaq and asking the government to come out with a law in this regard, Justices Kurian Joseph, RF Nariman and UU Lalit held it as violative of the Constitution.
The majority verdict said any practice including triple talaq which is against the tenets of Quran is unacceptable.
The three judges also said the practice of divorce through triple talaq is manifestly arbitrary and violative of the Constitution and must be struck down.
The bench, made up of judges from different religious communities — Sikh, Christian, Parsi, Hindu and Muslim – had heard seven pleas, including five separate petitions filed by Muslim women challenging the prevalent practice of ‘triple talaq’ in the community. The petitioners had claimed that the practice of ‘triple talaq’ was unconstitutional.
The Muslim women, who had filed the petitions, had challenged the practice of ‘triple talaq’ in which the husband pronounces ‘talaq’ thrice in one go, sometimes even by phone or a text message, to get divorce.
During the hearing, the apex court had observed that the practice of ‘triple talaq’ was the “worst” and “not a desirable” form of dissolution of marriage among Muslims, even though there were schools of thought which called it “legal”.
The Centre had earlier told the bench that it will come out with a law to regulate marriage and divorce among Muslims if ‘triple talaq’ is held invalid and unconstitutional by the apex court.
The government had termed all the three forms of divorce among the Muslim community — talaq-e-biddat, talaq hasan and talaq ahsan, as “unilateral” and “extra-judicial”.
