THE NUMBERS GAME IN TALAQ GOING WHICH WAY?

THE NUMBERS GAME IN TALAQ GOING WHICH WAY?

THE CONTRIBUTION OF MUSLIM WOMEN IS A PHENOMENON,A STUDY CLEARLY PORTRAYSTHE LONG STANDING CULT OF A HUMAN PARADIGM WHERE RELIGIOUS NORMS HAVEBINDED OFTEN BLINDFOLDEDLY THE EXISTENCE OF LIFE.WHO CAN FORGET NURJEHAN,EMPEROR JEHANGIRS REDOUBTABLE QUEEN,AND THE REAL POWER BEHIND THESCENE OF THE MUGHAL EMPIRE?IN LATER YEARS BHOPAL WITNESSED WOMEN FROMTHREE GENERATIONS REIGN IN SUCCESSION,A RARE PHENOMENON .MUSLIM WOMENDOMINATE THE SEVA ORGANIZATION IN LUCKNOW SPECIALISING IN THE EXQUISITECHIKAN EMBROIDERY ON GAUZY CLOTHES,AND QUARUNISSA IS FAMOUS FOR REVIVINGTHE MAGNIFICIANT ZARDOSI EMBROIDERY IN GOLD THREAD,SILKS AND JEWELS OFMUGHAL TIMES,WHICH CREATED FABRIC AND GARMENTS LIKE TAPESTRY,ON HANDEMBROIDERED BROCADE.THERE ARE MANY PROMINENT MUSLIM WOMEN WHO HAVE BEENVERY ACTIVE IN VARIOUS FIELDS LIKE BEGUM AKHTAR AND ROSHANARABEGUM.QURRATULAIN HYDER,THE FAMOUS NOVELIST AND POET HAD AN EARLYGROUNDWORK IN JOURNALISM FROM HER MOTHER,ZAZAR SAJJAD HYDER,WHO EDITED ACHILDRENS MAGAZINE AND WAS HERSELF A NOVELIST WITH FAR RANGING VIEWS ONWOMENS ROLE AND WOMENS RIGHTS.WHILE THE LIST IS ENDLESS UNDENIABLY MUSLIMWOMEN IN INDIA,HAVE CONTRIBUTED AT EVERY LEVEL OF SOCIETY TOWARDS THEDEVELOPMENT OF FEMINA AND THE NATION IN GENERAL.AMIDST SUCH HIGH YIELDINGDEVOTION AND DEDICATION THEIR LIVES HAVE BEEN THORN CAST FROM TIMEIMMORABLIA WHERE STRICT RELIGIOUS LAWS HAVE DEPLORED THEIR BASIC RIGHTS TOFREEDOM AND VENT OF ENERGY.SUCH CULMINATING FACTORS HAVE BEEN OFTENOPPRESSIVE TO SUCH EXTENT AS TO EAT UPON THE BASIC INGREDIENTS OF THEIRLIVES AND ACTIONS.THE CAMPAIGN FOR BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS OPPOSING THEFUNDAMENTALIST MISINTREPRETATIONS OF SHARIAT BEING THEIR MOST RECENTENDEAVOUR.ALMOST 20 YEARS AGO SHAH BANO,HAD SOUGHT LEGAL RECOURSE FOR SUPPORT FROMHER HUSBAND,FOLLOWING THE ANNULMENT OF 43 YEARS OF MARRIAGE.THE SUPREMECOURT HOWEVER TURNED DOWN HER HUSBAND PLEATHAT HAVE BEEN BOUND BY ISLAMICLAW ALONE.THE COURT RULED THAT A HUSBAND MUST ASSIST HIS WIFE FINANCIALLYEVEN AFTER A DIVORCE IF SHE HAD NO MEANS.BUT THE COMMUNITY PROTESTSDILUTED THE ISSUE FOLLOWING VIGOROUS DISCUSSIONS IN THE HOUSES OFPARLIAMENT.IN COURSE OF TIME THIS RESULTED IN THE COMPLETE ABSORBANCE OFMUSLIM WOMEN BEING DELETED FROM CLAIMING MAINTENANCE BEYOND “ADDAT” OR THETHREE MENSTRUAL CYCLES.TALAQ-I-BIDAH IS A INNOVATIVE FORM OF DIVORCE OFTENA PURIFIED VERSION WHERE THE MAN PRONOUNCES “I DIVORCE YOU ,I DIVORCEYOU,I DIVORCE YOU”.THE HANAFIS THOUGH BELIEVE THAT THOUGH THIS FORM OFDIVORCE IS SINFUL AND INNOVATIVE THIS FORM IS NOT VALID AND DIVORCE WILLTAKE PLACE.ACCORDING TO THE DIALECT PRONOUNCEMENT OF SUCH STANCE SEPARATESTHE MAN TO SUCH EXTENT WHERE HE CAN NEITHER NIKAH WITH HER NOR CAN CLAIMHER AT ANY POINT OF TIME BUT CAN DO SO ONLY AFTER A SECOND MARRIAGE BY THEWOMAN AND HER DEPARTURE FROM THE SAME.NEGLIGENCE OF SUCH DIALECTS WOULDPRONOUNCE THE RELATION AS HARAM.THE ALL INDIA MUSLIM PERSONAL LAW BOARD(AIMPLB),THE APEX LEGISLATIVE BODY FOR RELIGIOUS AND PERSONAL ISSUES OFMUSLIMS,HAVE PRONOUNCED SEVERAL LAWS WITH LESS SUCCESSS PERTAINING TOWOMENS RIGHTS.REFORMISTS QUESTION AS TO HOW REPITITIVE UTTERANCE OF ASIMPLE WORD CAN CHANGE A MARRIAGE?ACCORDING TO MAULANA UMAR AHMAD USMANITHIS IS NOT ONLY TO POSITION OF HANIFA BUT ALSO IMAM MALIK THAT THIS FORMOF DIVORCE IS QUITE VALID.HIS STAND CLEARLY PORTRAYS THE BELIEVE OF THEMAN TAKING BACK THE WOMAN WITHIN THE IDDAH PERIOD OR GOING FOR NIKAH IFTHE IDDAH PERIOD IS NOT OVER,WHICH IS BASED ON A RECONSTRUCTING MODULE OFTHE QUARANIC POSITION.THE ITHNA ASHARIS(12 SHIAS) AND IMAMIYAS BELIEVETHAT IF THREE DIVORCE TAKE PLACE,AND IF ONE IS OCCLUDED LET ALONE THREE BEGRANTED WISHES.ACCORDING TO ULAMA OF LATER PERIOD,SHEIKH SHALTUT BELIEVESIN THE THOUGHTS THAT ONLY ONE DIVORCE TALAQI RAJI WILL TAKE PLACE AND THEHUSBAND WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE BACK THE WOMAN BY SAYING SO OR BYHAVING SEXUAL CONTACT WITH HER.IN QURAN NIKAH IS DESCRIBED AS MISAQANGALIZA,WHERE A STRONG BOND IS CREATED WHICH CANNOT BE DISSOLVED WITHOUTPROPER REASONS.EARLY ARABIC VERSES PRONOUNCED DIVORCE THOUSAND TIMES ANDKEPT THE SWORD HANGING ON THE HEAD OF THE WOMAN FOR LONG WHICH WAS HIGHLYDEPLORED BY QUARANIC INJUNCTIONS WHICH CLAIMED THREE INSTANCES OF PURITYWHERE ONLY ONE TIME OF PRONOUNCEMENT OF TALAQ FREES THE WOMAN FROM MARITALBOND AND SHE BECOMES FREE TO CHOOSE HER FUTURE AFTER COMPLETING THE PERIODOF IDDAH.WHY TALAQ THREE TIMES?WHATS THE MORALITY?THE QUESTION BEWILDERSSTILL………IN DARKNESS.MUHAMMAD HAYKAL PROCLAIMS THAT WHEN ARABS CONQUEREDSYRIA,EGYPT,IRAQ THEY BROUGHT MANY WOMEN FROM MEDINA AND MECCA WHOCAPTIVATED THEM WITH THEIR MYSTIC BEAUTIES.BUT THE WOMEN WANTED THE MEN TOGRANT IRRECONCIABLE DIVORCE TO THEIR FORMER WIVES TO WHICH THE MEN GRANTEDTHREE FORMS OF TALAQ AS IF FOR THE GOODNESS OF TIMES.SUCH WAS THEOPPRESSIVE FEATURES OF A MALE DOMINATED CULT WHICH MANY BELIEVES HAVETRASCENDED THE BELIEFS AND THOUGHTS OF QUARANIC INJUNCTIONS.THE SUBSEQUENTINJUNCTION PROCLAIMED AIMPLBS LIKE BOARDS PRONOUNCE FIVE GROUNDS FOIRDIVORCE:CRUELTY,DESERTION FOR TWO YEARS,REFUSAL TO PROVIDE MAINTENANCE FORONE YEAR,SEPARATION FOR ONE YEAR.WHILE THESE ARE VALID GROUNDS FORDIVORCE,THE COMMUNITY MEASURES INVALID THE TRIPLE FORM OF TALAQ AND WANTSGREATER FOCUS ON WOMEN DEVELOPMENT AND CRITICAL ISSUES PERTAINING TOSOCIETY REFORMS.EVEN THE PROPHET TERMED IT AS “A HATRED SITUATION BUTPERMISSIBLE” WHERE VARIOUS NOTIONS PROCLAIM THE ISLAMIC VERSES DENYINGEQUAL RIGHTS TO MEN AND WOMEN AND CONSIDERING WOMEN ONLY TO BE OBJECTS OFDESIRE.QUARANIC VERSES OF SUPPORT FOR POLYGAMISM IS HIGHLY DEBATABLE WHEREMANY GO AGAINST SUCH NOTIONS BUT ARE VALID FOR FEW ON GROUNDS OFMORAL,PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL DEMANDS OF HUMAN LIVES.THE VERSEPROCLAIMS “AND IF YOU FEAR THAT YOU CANNOT ACT EQUATABLY TOWARDSORPHANS,THEN MARRY SUCH WOMEN AS SEEM GOOD TO YOU,TWO THREE AND FOUR,BUTIF YOU THINK YOU CANNOT DO JUSTICE TO THEM THEN MARRY ONLYONE”(4:3).BETWEEN THE SILVER LINING OF THOUGHTS THERE HOPES DWELL WHERETHE RIGHT TO FREEDOM BREATHES AWE OF WOMENS DESIRE TO EQUAL RIGHTS OFEXPRESSION RATHER THAN BEING CONSIDERED UNHOLY OBJECTS OF DESIRE.