Just Like Haq's 'Shah Bano' Meet Shayara Bano Who Dragged Her Husband To Court For Triple Talaq

The nation is witnessing the struggles of Shah Bano to seek maintenance from her husband, who left after 14 years of marriage, in the Bollywood film Haq. There is another Muslim woman who chose to fight the patriarchal Muslim laws that put men on a pedestal and gave them the right to instant divorce with Triple Talaq. It is a horror that many Muslim women suffered in India till 2017. Read on to know all about it!

Meet Shayara Bano, who dragged her husband to court for giving her Triple Talaq

Shayara Bano was the first and key petitioner in the case where she questioned the legality of Triple Talaq for Indian Muslim women. She was 35 years old back then and hailed from Uttarakhand. Shayara Bano had to take the big step after she was issued a talaqnama by her Allahabad-based husband, Rizwan Ahmad, on October 10, 2015.

Shayara Bano got a Talaqnama in a telegram after 15 years of marriage 

Shah Bano's world fell apart when, after 15 years of marriage to Rizwan Ahmad, she received a talaqnama by telegram. Shayara Bano was a mother of two, and claimed that she was forced to undergo at least half a dozen abortions, which wrecked her emotional and physical well-being. On top of it, she wasn't allowed to meet her close relatives.  Shayara Bano revealed that her family had given dowry to her husband and his family at the time of their marriage. Still, she was tortured by her in-laws as they demanded more dowry in the form of a car and cash. She was subjected to physical abuse, and in his defence, Shayara Bano's ex-husband claimed that he had given her talaq as his religion allows him. He further stated that he cannot take her back as his religion doesn't allow it. In an interview with The Indian Express, he said:

"I have given her talaq the way Shariat and Hadith allow me to. I cannot take her back now, it will be against the Shariat. It is not good to go against what the religion has prescribed."

Shayara Bano filed a Public Interest Litigation to ban the practice of Triple Talaq 

Despite the pain and trauma she suffered, Shayara Bano took the bold decision of filing a Public Interest Litigation to demolish the practice of Triple Talaq. She stated that she had no money, and her kids were taken away. She went through depression and still chose to fight the legal battle. Bano's petition clearly stated that the practices of Talaq-e-Bidat, Nikah Halala, and polygamy under Muslim personal laws should be declared illegal and unconstitutional. A part of the petition can be read as:

"The practice of talaq-e-bidat and divorce of a woman without proper attempt at reconciliation violates the basic right to live with dignity of every Muslim woman. Muslim women have been given talaq over Skype, Facebook, and even text messages. There is no protection against such an arbitrary divorce. Muslim women have their hands tied while the guillotine of divorce dangles, perpetually ready to drop at the whims of their husbands, who enjoy undisputed power. Such discrimination and inequality hoarsely expressed in the form of unilateral triple-talaq is abominable when seen in light of the progressive times of the 21st century."

After the Supreme Court declared Triple Talaq unconstitutional in Shayara Bano's divorce case, the Indian Parliament enacted the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act 2019, which made triple talaq a criminal offense. However, despite getting a judgment in her favour, Shayara Bano and other petitioner lived their lives as half-divorced as their husbands never took them back.

Shayara Bano and Shah Bano's stories are a few that came into the light, but Muslim women have been suffering such ordeals in the name of Muslim personal law! 

Next Read: Haq True Story: Did Shah Bano's Husband Marry Her Cousin While She Was Pregnant With Third Child?

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