Divorce, divorce, divorce

A Muslim is required to face the problems of marital life; divorce is only a last and final resort. The Quran illustrates this point by expressing approval when the Prophet insisted that Zayd should not divorce his wife Zaynab inspite of the fact that there was a long standing dissension between the husband and wife.

The Quran characterizes disagreement between a husband and wife that is serious enough to raise a threat of divorce as Shiqaq Breach. But not even Shiqaq entitles either husband or wife to a divorce per se as the Quran sets out certain procedures such as the appointment of conciliators or arbitrators. In the Quran the concept of divorce is described thus: 8216;8216;If ye fearShiqaq Breach between then twain, appoint two arbiters, one from his family, and the other from hers; if they wish for peace, God will cause their reconciliation. 8217;8217; 4:35.

Regarding Talak-i-bidat or triple Talaq it is important to understand that the word 8216;8216;bidat8217;8217; itself means disapproved or innovative or something the Prophet never did or recommended. It is therefore known to be an irregular or heretical form of divorce. Although disapproved by the Prophet, it has been accepted by most of the Sunni jurists though they submit that in 8216;8216;commissioning it the man incurs a sin.8217;8217; The Shias and Malikis and Ahl al Hadith do not accept the validity of such a form or divorce.

The most common method of talaq-i-bidat is triple pronouncement brought about in a single sitting.Talaq-i-bidat in India is also effective if the husband were to repudiate his wife during her menstrual flow; in jest at the slip of tongue, under intoxication, or also, if he were to accompany a single repudiation with some expression of finality.

In this form of talaq after the ronouncement, if the parties wish to remarry they can not do so till the wife undergoes halala a pre-Islamic custom or the wife goes through another marriage which is consummated and subsequently dissolved. The rights of inheritance cease immediately and the talaq becomes irrevocable, though the death, whether of the husband or the wife, may occur before the expiry of iddat or the waiting period.

This seems to have been the customary form of divorce practiced in pre-Islamic Arabia. Neither does the Quran mention this form nor was it recognized or sanctioned by the Prophet. It seems to have crept into Islamic jurisprudence at the instance of the Omeyyad monarchs.Some scholars indicate Caliph Umar legitimised this form of divorce as an emergency measure. His object in making effective three divorces pronounced on one occasion was to warn the people that they would have to take the evil consequences of following an un-Islamic practice, but the result was contrary to what he intended. Henceforth, it became a general practice to pronounce divorce thrice on a single occasion, thus turning a revocable divorce into an irrevocable one.

Innumerable jurists and theologians from the days of antiquity down to modern times have held that the pronouncement of a triple divorce is not permissible. This form of divorce has been constantly reviewed by Muslim countries all over the world and subjected to severe criticism. Preventive measures of various kinds have been adopted that have constrained its use in its present form. In all such countries arbitration councils and judicial intervention have been introduced to attempt reconciliation. Tunisia, Algeria, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, Pakistan, Egypt and several Muslim countries have introduced different measures to safeguard women8217;s rights.

The demand to bring an end to the practice of the triple talaq in India is routinely ignored by the conservatives. In doing so they not only uniformly invoke a patrichial picture of Islam but also dismiss the gender-sensitive egalitarian voice of Islam which has given equal rights to women. 8216;8216;And women shall have rights similar to those against them 2:229.8217;8217;. Triple talaq is an un-Quranic, un-Islamic practice.

The writer is Professor Islamic Studies, St. Xavier8217;s College, Mumbai