Within hours of the Supreme Court (SC) declaring triple talaq unconstitutional, a man divorced his wife using the same provision, known as talaq-e-biddat, in Uttar Pradesh's (UP) Meerut on Tuesday evening.

In perhaps the first case of instant talaq after the banning of the same by the apex court, a resident of the Kamrannawaban area in Sardhana, Meerut, Siraj Khan, divorced his wife of six years, Arshi Nida, by uttering the word 'talaq' three times. The couple has two sons and a daughter, and Arshi is currently pregnant.

Arshi's father Sabreen said: "Soon after the wedding, Siraj and his family started beating my daughter for more dowry. They wanted a car. They threatened to marry off Siraj to another woman."

Reportedly, when Arshi gave birth to their third child, a daughter, Siraj and his family members thrashed her and threw her out of the house. "They told me to return only with a Santro car and Rs 1 lakh in cash," Arshi said.

Finally on Tuesday, Sabreen and some elders of the mohalla went to Siraj's house to try and reach an agreement. "Siraj and his family members created a ruckus and threw us out of the house. When other residents of the area tried to pacify them, Siraj said talaq three times to end the marriage," Sabreen said.

When reminded of the SC ban, Siraj allegedly shouted: "For me, this is the end of my marriage with Arshi. We will get a certificate from the Qazi."

Arshi then lodged a case on Wednesday at the Sardhana police station against Siraj, his father Riyaz, mother Moina, and other family members for violating the Supreme Court order and under the Dowry Act.

Confirming the receipt of the complaint, Sardhana SHO Dharmendra Kumar said: "We have lodged a case and will initiate action against the accused, once the investigation is finished."

Meanwhile, soon after the registration of the case, Siraj and his family members went absconding.

Commenting on the incident, Shahista Amber, Chairperson of the All-India Women Muslim Personal Law Board, said: "It is unfortunate that the community members are still adamant about following the age-old unislamic practice of triple talaq, even after the Supreme Court has banned it. It is a case of contempt of the apex court and the police must initiate immediate action against the accused."

Legal expert Virag Gupta, however, said there was no clarity yet about the action to be taken against those defying the SC ban. Also, the case of contempt has to be filed in the court whose order has been violated. In this case, either the victim or the state of Uttar Pradesh or a women's organisation will have to move a contempt application on Arshi's behalf in the SC, Gupta added.