The petition claims that the two practices, which come under the Muslim Personal law, do not hold a basis in the Quran, and has been banned/restricted by various other Islamic nations.
BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadyay has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court to challenge the constitutional validity of polygamy and Nikah-Halala.
According to a Mint report, the petition claims that the two practices, which come under the Muslim Personal law, do not hold a basis in the Quran and have been banned or restricted by various other Islamic nations.
Nikah-Halala requires that in order for a Muslim woman to remarry her divorced husband, she must marry another man and get divorced from him for the husband to take her back.
“A complete ban on polygamy and Nikah-Halala has long been need of the hour as it renders Muslim wives extremely insecure, vulnerable and infringes their fundamental rights. Equality should be the basis of all personal law since the Constitution envisages equality, justice and dignity for women,” the petition reads.
The PIL also states that the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act of 1939 is against Article 14 (right to equality), Article 15 (prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth) and Article 21 (right to life) of the Constitution of India, for being against public order, morality and health. The act fails to protect Indian Muslim women from bigamy.
The PIL also questioned the Centre for not implementing the Uniform Civil Code under Article 44 of the Constitution. The PIL also points out why the Indian Muslim Personal Law Board would bring up parallel courts in many localities to decide under the Shariat.
This reason stated that the parallel courts are against the constitutionally mandated system of a single judiciary for the entire country.
