New Delhi, March 12 The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) on Thursday termed a plea in the Supreme Court seeking to invalidate Islamic inheritance laws as "misleading," arguing that it allegedly discriminates against Muslim women.
The assertion by the Muslim body came after the Supreme Court on Tuesday observed that the time has come for a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), stating that the plea seeking to strike down provisions of the 1937 Shariat law, on the grounds that it discriminates against Muslim women, is a "very good case" that the legislature should consider.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and R Mahadevan said that if the court struck down the Shariat inheritance law, it would create a legal vacuum, as there is no statutory law governing Muslim inheritance.
In a statement, the AIMPLB strongly condemned the "misleading demand" made in the Supreme Court by a little-known organization, Naya Nari Foundation, seeking to invalidate Islamic inheritance laws, arguing that it allegedly discriminates against Muslim women.
The Board said it considers this demand baseless and contrary to the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom under Article 25.
AIMPLB spokesperson Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas stated that the Bombay High Court, in its well-known judgment in the Narasu Appa Mali case, had clearly held that personal laws cannot be subjected to constitutional scrutiny.
"Similarly, the claim that Islamic inheritance law is not an Essential Religious Practice reflects a lack of understanding of the religious status of Shariah-based family laws. Islamic family laws are directly derived from the Quran and Sunnah, and their observance is obligatory for Muslims," he said.
He further stated that the allegation that Islamic inheritance laws discriminate against Muslim women stems from ignorance of the wisdom and underlying principles of Shariah.
The spokesperson said that there are several situations in Islamic inheritance law where a woman receives a share equal to that of a man, sometimes more than a man, and in certain cases, only women inherit.
Ilyas further noted that the remark attributed to the CJI suggesting that the answer lies in a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) merely reiterates earlier observations of the Supreme Court.
Article 44 of the Directive Principles in Part IV of the Constitution is only a guiding principle, and the framers of the Constitution had made it clear that it cannot be imposed upon Muslims without their consent, he said.
"Imposing it would directly conflict with the fundamental right to religious freedom guaranteed under Article 25. As far as the Uniform Civil Code enacted by the State of Uttarakhand is concerned, it is illegal, unconstitutional, and imprudent, and the Muslim Personal Law Board has already challenged it before the high court," Ilyas said.