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HomeNationSupreme Court Requests Data On FIRs Filed In Triple Talaq Cases

Supreme Court Requests Data On FIRs Filed In Triple Talaq Cases

New Delhi [India], January 29: The Supreme Court on Wednesday requested the Centre to submit an affidavit detailing the total number of FIRs registered and charge sheets filed under the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019. This law criminalizes the practice of Triple Talaq and mandates a jail term of up to three years for the husband.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar directed the Centre to inform the court about the number of FIRs filed against Muslim men under the law and the pending cases in the courts. The bench also asked all parties involved in the case to submit written submissions and scheduled the matter for hearing in the week starting March 17.

During the proceedings, CJI Khanna asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, if he could provide details on the total number of FIRs registered under the law and cases pending in the courts. Mehta confirmed that he would provide the requested information.

Senior advocate MR Shamshad, representing some petitioners challenging the law, pointed out that FIRs are typically not filed for months in matrimonial cases, but in the case of Triple Talaq, FIRs are filed immediately after the utterance of the words. He further noted that abandonment in marriages is not criminalized in any other community.

Advocate Nizam Pasha, also representing petitioners, argued that criminalizing the mere utterance of words, like Triple Talaq, is unfair, as abandonment is not considered a criminal offense in other communities. In response, Solicitor General Mehta emphasized that Triple Talaq is not practiced in other communities, making the issue unique to Muslim law.

CJI Khanna remarked that while no one was defending the practice of Triple Talaq, the issue at hand was whether it should be criminalized, particularly when the practice had already been banned and no divorce could take place by the utterance of Triple Talaq.

The apex court was hearing multiple petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the 2019 Act, filed by political leader and Islamic scholar Amir Rashadi Madni, along with organizations like Samastha Kerala Jamaithul Ulema and Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind. The petitioners sought an interim stay on the law, which came into effect on August 1, 2019, following presidential assent.

The petitioners argued that the law violates fundamental constitutional rights and could lead to societal polarization. They claimed that the law’s primary purpose was to “punish Muslim husbands.” However, the Centre defended the law, stating that it aimed to preserve the sanctity of marriage and that Triple Talaq was a public wrong that violated women’s rights.

Triple Talaq had been declared void by the Supreme Court on August 22, 2017, effectively ending the practice.

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