There are many forms of divorce in Islamic law. Though marriage under Muslim law happens with the consent of both the parties, a man can divorce his wife (unilaterally) without taking her opinion. There are 3 broad ways a man can divorce his wife(listed below):

  1. Talaq-e-biddat: This is form a divorce which is referred to as “triple talaq”. In this form of divorce, a husband just needs to say or write or email or whats-app or SMS “talaq-talaq-talaq” and the marriage is dissolved instantly. The couple become haram for one another.
  2. Talaq-e-Hasan: In this form of divorce a husband needs to say or write or email or whats-app or SMS “talaq-talaq-talaq” and he waits for 3 months (menstruation cycles). Within this period, he is allowed to withdraw the divorce.
  3. Talaq-e-Ahsan: In this form of divorce a husband needs to say or write or email or whats-app or SMS “talaq(once only)” and he waits for 3 months (menstruation cycles). Within this period, he is allowed to withdraw the divorce. The difference between “Talaq-e-Hasan” and “Talaq-e-Ahasan” is that in the later: the man can re-marry her wife without doing halala (making his wife marry, have sex with another man and then take divorce) for 3 times. But in “Talaq-e-Hasan” the woman has to undergo halala after one divorce.

“Talaq-e-biddat” is the most dangerous form of divorce as the divorce happens instantly without any scope of compromise unlike the other two. But unfortunately, this was the most widely form of divorce practiced in India.

The “The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019” passed by Modi Govt outlaws “Talaq-e-biddat” i.e. instant triple talaq. The two other forms of divorce are still lawful. If a man develops extra marital affair, he just needs to wait for 3 months to dump his wife and children.

I would hence recommend the Govt to outlaw all forms of unilateral divorce. Just like a Hindu or Christian couple have to go to court for getting a divorce, same should be made applicable to Muslims.

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