The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought the response of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), National Commission for Women (NCW) and the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) to pleas challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy and 'nikah halala' among Muslims.
The Supreme Court said on Thursday that it will set up a fresh five-judge Constitution bench at an "appropriate stage" to hear pleas challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy and 'nikah halala' among Muslims.
The Supreme Court said on Thursday it will set up a fresh five-judge Constitution bench to hear the pleas challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy and 'nikah halala' among Muslims.
The Supreme Court on Friday said that it will set up a five-judge Constitution bench to hear pleas challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy and 'nikaah halala' practice among Muslims.
The application has been filed to oppose a batch of petitions on which the apex court had in 2018 issued notices to the Centre and other stakeholders while referring the matter to a 5-judge Constitution bench.
The government had said on Friday that it would oppose the practice of nikah halala when the top court examines its legal validity.
Prasad also attacked the previous United Progressive Alliance government for letting the women's reservation bill, introduced by it, lapse.
Uttarakhand Police have filed the country's first chargesheet under the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in a case involving alleged 'triple talaq' and 'halala'. The chargesheet, submitted in a Haridwar court, names nine individuals accused of dowry harassment, marital torture, and illegal divorce.
The Assam assembly on Thursday passed a bill to ban polygamy, making it an offence which may lead to a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment, barring some exceptions.
Rohatgi's submission came when the court asked him what are the remedies for a Muslim man to come out of a marriage if such practices are struck down.
The top court issued notices to Union ministries of law and justice and minority affairs as well as the National Commission of Women after taking note of the plea of Delhi-based woman Nafisa Khan challenging the practice of polygamy and 'nikah halala', and said that the matter will be taken up a five-judge Constitution bench.
The Supreme Court on Thursday fixed May 11 for commencement of hearing on pleas challenging the validity of triple talaq, 'nikah halala' and polygamy practices among Muslims.
The apex court had on March 30 observed that practices of 'triple talaq', 'nikah halala' and polygamy among Muslims were important issues involving "sentiments" and a Constitution bench would hear the pleas challenging these from May 11.
A five-judge constitution bench would commence hearing from May 11.
The SC said 'the issues are very important. These issues cannot be scuttled'.
'Every issue that Muslims are facing today affects Muslim women. But how come women's issues don't affect the community?' 'How does the community benefit by the practice of halala or polygamy?'
A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice J Khehar will commence hearing on seven petitions
A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar perused the four questions framed by the Centre and said they were "constitutional" ones which need to be dealt with by a five-judge bench.
"We are not interested with facts at all. We are only interested in dealing with the legal issue," the bench said.
'UCC should be across India and legally applicable to every Indian citizen.'
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the centre to file before it the report of a committee which was constituted earlier to look into the aspects of personal laws relating to marriage, divorce and custody prevalent in various religious minorities, including Muslims.
Directing officials to prepare a plan for taking views of Muslim women, the CM asked minister of the department and all women ministers in his cabinet 'to talk to women organisations'.
The Ministry of Law and Justice, in its affidavit, referred to constitutional principles like gender equality, secularism, international covenants, religious practices and marital law prevalent in various Islamic countries to drive home the point that the practice of triple talaq and polygamy needed to be adjudicated upon afresh by the apex court.
A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar said it would look into the aspect whether triple talaq is part of an "enforceable" fundamental right to practice religion by Muslims.
'Due to lack of understanding or patriarchal misinterpretation, a common notion was generated that if you are a Muslim man you can marry four times.'
The Union law ministry will file a consolidated reply on the issue in the apex court by the end of this month.
Vice President Hamid Ansari's wife Salma Ansari has said that uttering 'talaq' thrice does not amount to divorce and asked Muslim women to read the Quran thoroughly instead of relying on clerics.
A Muslim woman, who was divorced by her husband through a phone call from Dubai, has challenged the Muslim practices of polygamy, triple talaq (talaq-e-bidat) and nikah halala, leading the Supreme Court to seek response from the Centre on her plea on Friday.
The events that led to the landmark SC judgment.
"Over a dozen Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Tunisia, Morocco, Iran and Egypt have regulated triple talaq. If Islamic countries can regulate the practice by enacting law, and it has not been found against sharia, then how can it be wrong in India, which is a secular country?" Prasad said.
A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar will decide if 'triple talaq' among Muslims is fundamental to the religion.
Laying the roadmap of the Narendra Modi government for its second term, President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said empowering every person is the main goal for a 'New India' by 2022 on the back of a "stronger mandate" for continuing uninterrupted the journey of development started in 2014.
While seeking response from former Union minister and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing AIMPLB, the bench said, "Don't infer anything from our side."
The Uttarakhand assembly on Wednesday passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill, which may serve as a template for other Bharatiya Janata Party-run states to enact similar legislation.
Making an intervention during the discussion on the motion for granting constitutional status to the national commission for backward classes, Modi highlighted that there are sections among Muslims, who are backward, adding that they should be included in the discussion over backward classes.
The judges in the minority verdict said that if the Centre does not bring a law within six months, then its injunction on triple talaq will continue.
The apex court said 'we are not straightaway arriving at any conclusion' as there were 'very strong views' on both sides. It said it will also see if there was any error in previous judgements which dealt with the issue and decide whether it can be referred to a larger or a five-judge constitution bench.
Along with the triple talaq matter, the Supreme Court will also hear cases related to Aadhaar and WhatsApp during the nearly 50-day summer vacation.
The group will not just seek permission for women to offer prayers in the mosques, but also fight for appointing them as 'imams' (clerics).
The bench had made it clear that it would examine whether the practice of triple talaq among Muslims is fundamental to their religion.
