Plaintiff Wants court to declare divorce ‘unconstitutional and null’ and make her husband cohabit with her
Mumbai : Even though the Supreme Court struck down the Talaq-e-Biddat (triple talaq), there is no respite in sight for Ruksana Sayyed (changed name), who was divorced by her husband in 2015.
Ruksana is now planning to approach the Bombay High Court and challenge the constitutionality of the triple talaq given to her by her husband. She also seeks to challenge the practice of bigamy and polygamy.
Ruksana, a resident of Thane, had married Anwar Sayyed (changed name) in accordance with the Muslim rituals and customs in November 2009. She was the second wife of Anwar who was already married and had divorced his first wife.
According to Ruksana, who is in talks with advocate Nitin Satpute to file a writ petition in the HC, her seemingly ‘happy married life’ turned to be a nightmare within few months of her marriage.
In her petition, which is being drafted, Ruksana has said, “My husband behaved nice with me for only two months. However, once I got pregnant, his behaviour towards me changed. He had asked me to abort the child which I refused to and that led to our quarrels.”
Ruksana has claimed that her husband did no work for their livelihood and demanded she must get a job for their survival. She has also claimed that during her pregnancy, her husband and her in-laws refused to take care of her, especially after she developed several complications which led to a tragedy.
Before giving birth to a dead child, Ruksana claims to have been assaulted several times by her husband and in-laws. She has also accused her husband of demanding a dowry of Rs 2 lakh to purchase a new auto rickshaw.
“Every time I refused to bring the dowry, he would beat me. I have been suffering from severe mental as well as physical cruelty at the hands of my husband, who always picked a quarrel with me. He always taunted me and abused in filthy language,” her petition reads.
Interestingly, it was Ruksana’s ‘skin colour’ that led to their divorce. She states, “After marriage my husband started saying that I am not a suitable match for him as I am dark in complexion. He used to feel shy to even walk with me on the road.”
According to advocate Nitin Satpute, “We have challenged the divorce on the ground that Anwar had forged my client’s thumb impressions on the talaqnama. Also the fact that such a divorce abruptly, unilaterally and irrevocably terminates the ties of matrimony as purported under the provisions of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937.”
Accordingly, Ruksana has urged the HC to declare her divorce as ‘unconstitutional and null.’ She has also urged the court to issue a direction to her husband to cohabit with her again, if possible.
The woman is planning to approach the Bombay High Court and challenge the constitutionality of the triple talaq given to her by her husband. She also seeks to challenge the practice of bigamy and polygamy
