Girl granted khula after groom utters triple talaaq in inebriated condition

Ranchi: A Muslim woman on Thursday refused to marry her prospective groom after he arrived for the wedding inebriated and pronounced talaaq thrice during the rituals. The qazi said the marriage cannot be construed solemnized and a ‘khula’ (divorce) must be granted to the woman. The woman agreed with the qazi, saying she would not marry someone who uses alcohol, which is prohibited in Islam.
Police had to be called to the venue at Maulana Azad colony as the woman’s family manhandled the baraatis soon after the incident.
Rukhsana (name changed) was scheduled to marry Wasim Akram, a resident of Simdega, at a Ranchi hotel. In a dramatic sequence of events, Akram reached the venue under the influence of alcohol and marijuana and, midway through the rituals, said he wanted to divorce the girl. He went on to pronounce “talaaq” thrice.
Rukhsana immediately said she would not want an addict or a drunkard and refused the nikaah proceedings. The qazi intervened and granted the bride a “khula” so that she could be free to marry someone else.
Qazi Hazi Sahood Alam said: “Soon after the girl refused to marry Akram, I intervened and granted them a Khula after completing all the religious formalities in presence of two witnesses. We also ensured that the groom’s family paid for the expenses incurred by the woman’s family for the marriage. After the deductions, a mehr Rs2.5 lakh was paid to her family in compensation,” added Alam.
A team from Namkum police station led by IPS Anjani Anjan visited the venue and interrogated the hotel staff and also paid a visit to bride’s home as they received information that Akram and his baraatis were thrashed by the locals. The police detained the bride’s brother Zahid for interrogation. Akram’s family has also been summoned to the police station. Anjan said: “No one has been arrested and we have summoned the bride’s brother for an inquiry.”