Delhi registers first triple talaq case

New Delhi: The Delhi police has registered the first case of triple talaq in the national capital days after a law was passed in the Parliament in July this year to criminalise triple talaq. The police has arrested a 38-year-old man for allegedly pronouncing ‘talaq’ thrice and also sending a fatwa over WhatsApp regarding the talaq to his wife.

The police said that the man gave triple talaq to his wife in June this year. The man has been identified as Atir Shamim, a resident of Azad Market in Delhi. However, later on Saturday, the man got out on bail by a Delhi court.

According to DCP (North district) Nupur Prasad, Raima Yahya (30) went to North Delhi’s Bara Hindu Rao police station, on Friday, and filed a complaint in which she claimed that she was given triple talaq by her husband.

“Raima, in her complaint, stated that she got married to Atir on November 24, 2011. On June 23 this year, her husband pronounced talaq three times upon her and also has sent a fatwa over WhatsApp mentioning that triple talaq was pronounced on her,” said the DCP.

The police said that the couple got married in 2011, adding that the accused runs a shop in Kamla Market in North Delhi.

In her complaint, the woman alleged that she was being harassed for dowry by her husband and his family.

On June 28, “under-well planned conspiracy,” her husband and his family members went to her room and pressurised him to pronounce triple talaq, the complainant alleged. Thereafter, he pronounced talaq three times and they all asked her and her six-year-old son to leave the house.

“I came to my parental house but they were not present as they were out of the country. After two days, they sent my brother a fatwa on WhatsApp saying I had been given divorce and that I could not come back again,” she said in her complaint.

“Acting on her complaint, an FIR was registered under Section 4 of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act 2019 and an investigation was taken up,” said the DCP.

“A team of police has arrested the husband and further investigation is underway,” said the DCP.

According to a relative of Raima, her husband’s financial situation was not sound and he was forcing her again and again to get money from her parents.

“When she refused, Atir threw Raima and her son out of the house on June 23. He also announced triple talaq. Atir later also left a message regarding the triple talaq to her brother over WhatsApp,” said the relative.

The victim further added that she was not even given the mehr, which was agreed upon during the time of marriage.

Under the Muslim law, mehr is the money or property which the wife is entitled to receive from the husband in consideration of the marriage. The major objective of mehr is to provide for the subsistence of a woman after the dissolution of her marriage so that she is not left helpless after the death of the husband or termination of marriage by divorce. Mehr has also been considered as part of maintenance while fixing the amount of maintenance under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973.

Under Section 4 of the new act—passed by the Parliament on July 30—a Muslim husband, who pronounces triple talaq, is liable to be punished by imprisonment up to three years and a fine.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill was the most debated in the just-concluded session of Parliament. The debate on the bill lasted for close to 12 hours in both houses of Parliament. India Today analysed the time spent on discussing the 39 bills introduced in Parliament this session.