Hours after SC verdict, pregnant woman given triple talaq; FIR filed

Meerut: A pregnant woman was allegedly given triple talaq by her husband in the Sardhana area in Meerut, just hours after the Supreme Court declared the age-old practice as "unconstitutional" on Tuesday.

The woman, a resident of Mohalla Kamra Nawaban, in a complaint filed with the police alleged that her husband beat her up for dowry and drove her out of their house.

An FIR has been lodged against the man. The police said the talaq was "invalid" according to the ruling of the apex court.

The woman, who married the accused six years ago and is a mother of three, also alleged that she suffered a miscarriage due to the beating, the police said.

Reacting to the incident, the All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board said the case posed a question as to what punishment would be given to those who continue to indulge in the practice.

The woman's family members on Tuesday met her in-laws to discuss the matter. But her husband divorced her by pronouncing the word talaq thrice, the police said.

She said her family told her husband that the Supreme Court had struck down the practice, but he did not relent.

SHO Dharmendra Singh Rathore said an FIR has been registered against the woman's husband and six others under relevant sections of the IPC and the Dowry Prohibition Act.

AIMWPLB president Shaista Amber told PTI that it was a case of contempt of the apex court and that the board would knock its doors for fixing punishment in such cases.

She said the Supreme Court had asked for framing of a legislation on triple talaq but the government was "trying to shirk its responsibility by saying that it was not required
after the verdict".

"It has to be ensured that the issue of triple talaq is fully addressed else Muslim women will continue to face injustice," the AIMWPLB president said.

"The court and the government need to clarify their stand or we will be forced to take to the streets," she said.