RAMPUR: A 21-year-old woman in Indian state Uttar Pradesh was reportedly divorced by her husband for waking up late in the morning.
The issue immediately came to the limelight on a day when the government tabled the controversial triple talaq bill in the Parliament. In August, India’s top court banned a Islamic practice that allows men to divorce their wives instantly (known as ‘triple talaq‘), saying it was unconstitutional.
Gul Afshan said her husband Qasim, a truck driver, ended their four-year marriage by simply saying ‘talaq’ thrice.
Afshan is now back to living with her parents, despite whose objection she had married Qasim.
“My only fault was to wake up late and he immediately pronounced triple talaq. We had a love marriage, but soon the cracks emerged and I was beaten up by him almost every other day,” Afshan said..
While the Hindustan Times report quote that the couple later settled the dispute after intervention of a local panchayat who asked the woman to observe ‘iddat’ and ‘halala’.
‘Iddat’ is the period of separation observed by a woman after divorce or death of spouse, while ‘halala’ entails marrying another man, consummating marriage and divorcing him before remarrying previous husband.
“The couple agreed to remarry after the woman was asked to observe ‘iddat’ and ‘halala’. The panchayat was held with the consent of the woman’s family and her in-laws.
The woman had earlier told the HT that she would not accept triple talaq and would opt for a formal divorce if insisted by her husband. The woman’s family members did not allow her to speak to the media and claimed she was observing ‘iddat’.
The husband declined to comment on the issue.
The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights of Marriage) Bill, 2017, which criminalises the practice of instant triple talaq, was tabled in the Lok Sabha on Dec 28.
Under provisions of the proposed bill, a Muslim man who resorts to Talaq-e-Biddat or instant talaq would be jailed for three years and custody of any minor children would be granted to the affected woman.
The proposed bill makes instant divorce a non-bailable offence which can lead to imprisonment of up to three years upon conviction. It also makes it mandatory for the husband to pay maintenance to his wife and child support towards any children.
