New Delhi, February 11 The Supreme Court referred a Muslim woman's plea challenging the validity of "Talaq-e-Hasan" given by her husband to mediation on Wednesday.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi appointed former apex court judge Justice Kurian Joseph as the mediator on the plea filed by journalist Benazeer Heena.
"Talaq-e-Hasan" is a form of divorce among Muslims where a man can dissolve a marriage by pronouncing the word "talaq" once every month over a three-month period.
The apex court had earlier raised concerns over the practice of husbands' lawyers sending "talaq" notices to wives, as this has later led to conflicts around the validity of the divorce and accusations of polyandry when the wives remarry.
During the hearing on Wednesday, advocate Syed Rizwan Ahmed, appearing for Heena, submitted that the immunity of personal laws cannot be unchecked, and thus such practices cannot be found in the Holy Quran.
Senior advocate M R Shamshad, appearing for Heena's husband, stated that the three "talaqs" were delivered at the verified address mentioned in the wife's affidavit.
"If the wife is evading "talaq," you can approach us for deemed service on her. Even a newspaper advertisement can be put for this purpose. That would also be considered a notice," said the CJI.
"The issue is about a person, not religion. Mutual respect is to be maintained by both sides when they seek to part amicably," said the court.
Ahmed said Heena wanted to reconcile and is willing to initiate mediation in the matter.
The court noted that there is "an urgent and dire necessity" to refer both parties to mediation to find an amicable solution to the matrimonial dispute for its valid dissolution or for the parties to find any other alternative.
The court referred both parties to the mediation center and appointed Justice Joseph as the sole mediator, owing to his vast experience in resolving complex matrimonial disputes.
The counsels for both parties were directed to contact Justice Joseph by Thursday and fix a date for mediation. The court ordered Justice Joseph to make an endeavour to resolve the dispute within four weeks.
"We further direct that, in view of mediation having been initiated, the earlier "talaqs" alleged to have been given by the respondent shall remain in abeyance," the court said.
In a similar matter, the bench stayed the operation of a "Talaq-e-Hasan" divorce given by a Muslim husband to his illiterate wife.
"We direct that the parties shall be deemed to be a validly married couple unless the husband comes forward and shows that a valid "talaq" has been given. The concerned SHO (Station House Officer) shall find out the whereabouts of the husband and ensure his presence before this court," the bench said.
The apex court noted that there were allegations that the husband obtained his wife's signatures on a blank paper and he did not appear to defend them.
The top court had earlier sought the views of the National Commission for Women, the National Human Rights Commission, and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights on the issues.
Under "Talaq-e-Hasan," a divorce gets formalised after the third utterance of the word "talaq" in the third month if cohabitation has not resumed during this period.
However, if cohabitation resumes after the first or second utterance of "talaq," the parties are assumed to have reconciled.
In 2017, the top court declared Triple Talaq, also a form of divorce prevalent among the Muslim community, as unconstitutional after finding it to be arbitrary and violative of fundamental rights of Muslim women.