Triple Talaq: Much Ado About Nothing! What About Education, Jobs?

The debate over triple talaq is futile, says Parveen Talha, the first woman to serve in class-I civil service.

(In a landmark judgement, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, on 22 August, declared the practice of Triple Talaq unconstitutional. A five-judge bench of Chief Justice of India JS Khehar, Kurian Joseph, Rohinton Fali Norman, Uday Umesh Lalit and Abdul Nazeer struck down the practice on the grounds that it goes against the Shariat and the basic tenets of the Quran. In light of the judgement, The Quint is reposting this piece by Praveen Talha, who argues against any interference in Muslim personal law.)

No right thinking person will approve of a procedure which can break marital relationship forever at the utterance of the word ‘Talaq’ thrice by one party, without the consent of the other.

I, a practicing Muslim, and a woman, also totally condemn it and disagree with those who give legal sanction to this procedure, which is not the one laid down in the Holy Quran. There should be a gap of two months and ten days (period of Iddat) between each utterance.

Also Read: Will Issue Advisory to Not Go for Triple Talaq: AIMPLB to SC

Triple Talaq Not Rampant

These periods are used for reconciliation. When all possible ways of reconciliation fail, only then ‘talaq’ is uttered the third time and becomes irrevocable. Above all, the Holy Quran disapproves of talaq and allows it only as a last resort.

The intention of the present writer is not to elaborate on any details of the Muslim law regarding marriage and talaq. It is the subject taken up by the government, with ‘an intention to bring relief’ to Muslim women, which has surprised me and called for a comment.

According to the 2011 Census, only 0.49 percent of the total population of Muslim women were divorcees, and not all divorces followed triple talaq. The sharia courts, which were declared arbitration councils by the Supreme Court, are invoked by Muslims for solving their problems.

Women also approach them, particularly when marital problems arise. Divorce is permitted by these councils also, but through one pronouncement, preceded by the efforts of reconciliation through arbitration. The Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan carried out certain surveys which revealed that triple talaq was resorted to mostly by uneducated people and cases of talaq by e-mails, phones and SMS were negligible.

Also Read: Exclusive: ‘To Ban Triple Talaq, We Must Stop Talking About UCC’

History Marked by Suppression

All said and done, this practice needs to be stopped, I agree. But there was no hurry. There were more urgent issues facing the community which, if addressed, would have brought greater relief to a larger populace, and definitely a much larger number of women belonging to the Muslim community.

If one looks back at the history of Muslims, we will realise that since the uprising of 1857 they have only suffered humiliation and suppression. That was the time when the British began to treat the Muslims as subhuman and looked at the Mughal culture with utmost contempt. And that contempt, in the course of time, spread to the Hindu mind also, bringing a hardening attitude towards the Muslims and their culture.

Though in the uprising of 1857, Muslims and Hindus fought side by side for the restoration of the Mughal Court which was “till then regarded across northern India not as some sort of foreign Muslim imposition but as the principal source of political legitimacy and therefore as the natural centre of resistance against British colonial rule.”

William Dalrymple in The Last Mughal

Ghetto-isation of Muslims

The liberal and plural culture as well as administration under the Mughals was misrepresented; the kings were shown as decadent temple-destroying rulers as per an imperial propaganda taught in schools and colleges.

This distortion of history continued to haunt syllabi even after India’s independence and became more twisted as the years went by, misleading the youngsters who were left with nothing but poison in their minds and plans for revenge.

Since 1947, there have been riots galore, many of which can only be defined as genocides. Finally, the great show of strength was exhibited by the majority community when the Babri Masjid was razed in 1992, followed by the Bombay riots which witnessed even the policemen brandishing naked swords. The Muslims lost all their confidence. All they could do was to push themselves into ghettoes for security.

Treated as Second-Class Citizens

The post-independence period also witnessed the avoidable death of the beautiful Urdu language and the rich culture associated with it. The partition had already seen the migration of the elite among the Muslims to Pakistan. Those who were left in India were the depressed lot and belonged to divided families.

Loss of property during partition and abolition of zamindari had already weakened them. Thereafter followed a long period of neglect of Muslims, for which no specific political party can be blamed. Whichever party came to power, be it at the Centre or in the states, didn’t give any priority to the interests of the community.

Also Read: Turning Norm on Its Head, Meerut Woman Pronounces Triple Talaq

Hollowness of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’

PM Modi’s Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas appears to be nothing more than a slogan for political gains. To confirm that, all one has to do is to refer to the Sachar Committee report. The prime minister will immediately know who has suffered the most in the last 70 years when India was not ruled by any foreigner. The reins were in our own hands.

Muslims have had zero or negligible share in the development plans of the country. They have been stereotyped and mired in myths like – ‘They do not want to educate their children in mainstream schools, but in madarsas’; ‘they have multiple wives’; ‘they only want to procreate and live in ghettos’, these topi-clad, bearded terrorists!

The Sachar Committee report shattered these myths and revealed that Muslims are forced to live in ghettos because people do not want to rent/sell houses to them. They are forced to send their children to madarsas because their children are refused admission in regular schools. The areas where they live often lack in drainage facilities, sanitation, schools and hospitals.

Govt Should Change its Priorities

The Muslims’ share in employment is miserable, particularly in government services – the police and other law enforcement agencies – what to speak of the IAS/IFS/IPS/IRS. A community living on the margins of society for nearly a century can’t even dream of appearing for these competitions.

And yet an average Muslim has to take the blame for being appeased and being anti-national at the same time! Will a woman, who is living in these conditions, be happy, even if she is not a victim of triple talaq? Shouldn’t the government correct their priorities even if it wants to improve the conditions of women only among the Muslims?

Also Read: Demand to End Triple Talaq a Result of Muslim Women’s Empowerment

(The writer is a former civil servant and is credited with being the first Muslim woman to serve in class -I civil service in India. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)