After years of suffering marital oppression, Muslim women may now have a reason to smile. New laws are under consideration which would revise the process of divorce among Muslim couples. The All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board (AIMWPLB) has forwarded the ‘Shariat Nikahnama’ which guarantees equal marital and divorce rights to Muslim men and women.
Under this law, a woman holds the right to divorce her spouse in case of adultery, incapacitation, harassment, abandonment, HIV positive status and absence of a physical relationship. The board claims to have taken into consideration all the tenets of Islam which does not preach oppression of women in any manner or form. On implementation of this law, Muslim women would stand at par with women of all other religions and cultures in terms of marital rights.
The Nikahnama abolishes divorce via SMS, e-mail, provocation or even letters. A woman can choose to live separately in case her husband refuses to give her a legal divorce. Not only divorce, the Nikahnama also suggests a set of new marital guidelines for the bride and groom.
This new legal provision is sure to be welcomed by woman welfare and empowerment groups as it offers a whole new hope for the many Muslim women who suffer in silence owing to poor legal back-up.
