Nikah Halala

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    In News

    • Recently, Public interest litigation (PIL) was filed seeking the annulment of halala marriage and polygamy.

    More about the news

    • About PIL:
      • The PIL was regarding the annulment of Section 2 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, to be declared arbitrary and in violation of Articles 14, 15, 21 and 25 of the Constitution. 
      • The litigant requested the court to ensure that provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, apply to all Indian citizens. 
        • She contended that nikah halala is rape under IPC Section 375.

    What is Nikah halala?

    • About:
      • Nikah halala is a law that requires a woman to marry and sleep with another man in order to return to her first husband.
      • In Islam, ‘halala’ is a term that finds its roots in ‘halal’ that translates to something that is permissible, and therefore ‘lawful’. 
        • In the context of marriage then, it means that a divorced woman can become ‘halal’ (lawful) for her husband again after nikah halala is complete.
    • The procedure:
      • Islam dictates that a Muslim man has the liberty to divorce and remarry the same woman twice. 
      • However, if he decides to dissolve the marriage for the third time, he can only remarry the same woman if she first marries another man, consummates the marriage, and only if the man dies or willingly asks for divorce, can the woman go back to her first husband and remarry him.
        • Usually, nikah halala stems from instant triple talaq and ends with it.
    • Quranic justification:
      • Halala, the way the Koran speaks of it, empowers women to take independent decisions. 
      • It saves women from temperamental husbands who divorce in a fit of anger, then cancel it, then divorce again, unleashing an endless cycle of marriage and divorce.
    • Global scenario:
      • In Saudi Arabia, where divorces are on the rise, no cases of halala have been reported. 
      • No case has been reported from the UAE, Kuwait and Yemen either.
    • Indian Law on Nikah Halala:
      • In India, the Muslim Women’s Protection of Rights on Marriage, passed after invalidation of triple talaq by the Supreme Court, is silent on nikah halala. 
      • The Act made instant triple talaq a criminal offence but steered clear of halala which takes place as a consequence of triple talaq. 

    Issues:

    • In modern India, nikah halala has been manipulated and misused. 
    • Rapes:
      • There are cases of rapes on women by keens on the name of Halala.
    • Websites offering halala marriage:
      • In the midst of this, several websites and social media pages have emerged offering halala marriage services to women who’ve been divorced by their first husbands.
    • Blackmailing and extortion:
      • Many women who approach these services are either blackmailed or taken advantage of. 
      • Many are asked to pay large sums of money. 

    Triple Talaq

    • About:
      • Triple talaq is a form of divorce that was practised in Islam, whereby a Muslim man could legally divorce his wife by pronouncing talaq (the Arabic word for divorce) three times. 
        • The pronouncement could be oral or written, or, in recent times, delivered by electronic means such as telephone, SMS, email or social media. 
      • The man did not need to cite any cause for the divorce and the wife need not have been present at the time of pronouncement. 
      • After a period of iddat, during which it was ascertained whether the wife is pregnant, the divorce became irrevocable. 
        • In the recommended practice, a waiting period was required before each pronouncement of talaq, during which reconciliation was attempted. 
      • However, it has become common to make all three pronouncements in one sitting. 
        • While the practice was frowned upon, it was not prohibited. 
      • A divorced woman could not remarry her divorced husband unless she first married another man, a practice called nikah halala.
    • Position in Koran:
      • Triple talaq is not mentioned in the Quran. It is also largely disapproved by Muslim legal scholars. 
    • Global scenario:
      • Many Islamic nations have barred the practice, including Pakistan and Bangladesh.
    • Legality in India:
      • The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019 made triple talaq illegal in India.
      • It stipulates that instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) in any form – spoken, written, or by electronic means such as email or SMS – is illegal and void, with up to three years in jail for the husband. 
      • Under the new law, an aggrieved woman is entitled to demand maintenance for her dependent children.

    Way Ahead

    • In patriarchal societies, religious laws have often been lopsided, favouring men. 
    • Laws such as triple talaq and nikah halala are not only archaic, but they are also debilitating for Muslim women. 
    • The legality of such laws needs to be challenged and subsequently discarded.

    Source: TH

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