Kurnool: Is triple talaq cruel as affirmed by Allahabad High Court? Here is a snapshot of what Muslim women intellectuals think about triple talaq in Kurnool city where 30 per cent of the city population is Muslim. Modernism is blended with religious bigotry in the opinions expressed by a lawyer, academicians and students. Rafat, Additional Public Prosecutor, Second Additional District and Sessions Court at Adoni welcomed the Allahabad High Court decision which said that triple talaq was cruel and no personal law was above the Constitution.
She demanded half of the property of the husband after the divorce has been granted should be made into Indian laws so that Muslim women can be assured of financial independence. She quoted American judicial system where divorcees are as a rule granted 50 per cent of the property of the spouse. Giving the rationale for her claim, she said that in 2016, Shayara Bano alleged that her husband subjected her to much cruelty including taunts for inadequate dowry, forced abortions, and eventually an arbitrary unilateral divorce.
She said that it was similar to the Praveen Akhtar case of 1992, where the petitioner does not merely question the maintenance upon divorce but rather what the true Islamic position on such type of divorce is. Talaq-e-bidat by its definition (bidat) indicates a customary or an irregular practice. She said that the case argued that misinterpretation of Islamic laws deprived women of their right to freedom of religion. Thus, revision or reform became more favourable options rather than a wholesale replacement of personal laws.
Dr Jahanara, Professor of Library and Information Sciences at Silver Jubilee Government College, opposed the judgment of Allahabad High Court on triple talaq and said that Islam is the most humanistic religion in the world. She said that the social system of Islam is a very straight and simple one. There are neither formalities nor legal complications in it. The religion of Islam is a perfect way of life, she said. In order to keep the Muslim masses connected with the social system of Islam and keep them obedient to the commands of the Shariat, it is necessary that, despite all the hair-splitting, social problems should be solved in the light of Quran and Sunnah, Dr Jahanara opined.
Dr Akhtar Bhanu, Associate Professor at Government Degree College, Kurnool also echoed the similar sentiments and opposed the Allahabad High Court Judgment. However, students belonging to St Francis College had a different view. They said that triple talaq is bad. Reshma, a life sciences student said a 'no no' for triple talaq and wanted the personal law to reorient to suit to the contemporary trends of society. Tahaseen and Hureen also of St Francis College wanted a flexible personal law depending upon the needs of the society.
