Hyderabad which had emerged as a hub for debate on triple talaq reacted with caution to Tuesday’s Supreme Court judgment on the issue. While the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) called it intrusive, campaigners against the practice say that the ground reality will not change unless the Muslim clergy gets involved.
“If we compare divorce statistics among Muslims and Hindus, the rate is lower among Muslims. Then there are instances of desertion and separation which are not legalised in other communities. We have to see if the judges relied on jurisprudence or arguments. But there is a communal agenda in the country and everyone is following it,” said Syed Aminul Jafri of AIMIM.
In the winter of 2016, Hyderabad saw a lot of activity including public meetings and a signature campaign against the Law Commission initiative to discuss Uniform Civil Code.
“Today is day for celebration of freedom of religion as the majority judges have recognised that the freedom of religion is absolute. There is a lot of misinformation floating about that triple talaq has been held unconstitutional by the five-member Supreme Court Bench. Two judges have held it constitutional and two judges have held it unconstitutional. Justice Kurian Joseph doesn’t say the triple talaq is unconstitutional,” said Faizan Mustafa, Vice Chancellor of Nalsar University of Law, who raced through the 395-page judgment.
“By holding anything as unconstitutional will not bring about social change. Now, it is up to the Muslim clergy to religiously outlaw triple talaq. Normative changes does not bring about any major change in ground. There will be men resorting to triple talaq and women going to court. Then what? If the neighbours and relatives consider that a divorce has taken place, it has. No judgment will change that,” says Mr. Mustafa. “The SC judgment is nothing new. It is status quo as it has thrown the ball back to Parliament. It is just following the procedure laid out by Guwahati High Court in 1981,” said Lubna Sarwath, a social worker and who campaigned for changes in triple talaq. “I am happy with today’s verdict. We feel there is no difference between constitutional principles and Koran and we will be happy if a law is framed considering both the aspects. At the end of the day, it is immediate and short-term relief for Muslim women,” said an activist of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan.
“As law abiding citizens, we respect the SC judgment. But it is important to understand that the divorce rate is a low .03% among Muslims. Even in these cases, the community and religious leaders support the victim ,” said Khalid Saifullah of Center for Research and Debates in Development Policy, which carried out a pan-India survey of Muslim divorce cases reaching out to 20,000 people.