india

Updated: Aug 12, 2019 13:50 IST

Ten days after President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to the triple talaq bill, a woman in Odisha’s Balasore district alleged her husband divorced her by saying the word ‘talaq’ thrice at a community meeting.

In her complaint to the police in Bhogarai on Sunday, Nilofar Bibi of Sunadharabasana village alleged her husband SK Sahir pronounced ‘triple talaq’ during the meeting, which was held last week to resolve their marital discord.

Nilofar married Sahir in June 2017 out of love but the marriage turned sour.

To resolve the marital discord, community elders talked with Nilofar’s father and her husband Sahir at a local mosque last week. Sahir allegedly uttered ‘talaq’ three times and told everyone that Nilofar is no longer his wife.

She also alleged that she regularly tortured by her husband for more dowry.

“My husband tried to get me to abort the child in my womb by making me eat ‘abortion’ pills. He even tried to mix poison in my food to kill the child in my womb. Luckily, I delivered a girl child in April this year. Still, the torture did not stop,” she wrote in her complaint to the police.

Bhogarai police station inspector, NK Das, said that a case of ‘dowry torture’ has been lodged against the husband, while the allegation of ‘triple talaq’ is under inquiry.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, criminalised the extra-judicial practice of talaq-e-biddat and Muslim men divorcing their wives under the practice either in person or through e-mail, SMS or social media could be jailed for three years.

To be implemented retrospectively from September 19 last year, the act makes ‘triple talaq’, earlier considered irrevocable, a cognisable and non-bailable offence.

Two days ago, another woman in Kendrapara district had complained about her husband pronouncing ‘talaq’ over the phone from Hyderabad, just over a year after their wedding.

“My in-laws tortured me for dowry following which I went to my father’s house where I delivered a baby boy, three months ago. When I called my husband to take me with him to Hyderabad after my delivery, he got angry and refused to acknowledge me,” alleged Rubina Khatun.

“When I called him again, he pronounced talaq three times over the phone,” she said.

Police, however, said Khatun’s complaint to them did not mention any ‘triple talaq’.