Holy Quran does NOT Sanction Nikah Halala!

A fatwa was issued by All India Faizan-E-Madina Council against social activist Nida Khan from Bareilly. The fatwa announced a cash reward of Rs 11,786 to anyone who chops off her hair and stones her to death. Moreover, the Ala Hazrat Dargah in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly excommunicated her from Islam.

Her fault? She had spoken against nikah halala and triple talaq which invited the ire of religious bigots. Nida Khan who got married to Ahmed Raza Khan, was divorced by her husband through triple talaq (the utterance of the word talaq three times in one breath) and later forced to undergo the indignity of nikah halala with her father-in-law in order to remarry the husband who had so arbitrarily divorced her in the first place.

A fatwa was issued against Nida Khan for speaking against nikah halala.

What is Nikah Halala?

Under nikah halala, a man cannot remarry his former wife if he has divorced her for the third time. This is possible only if she marries (temporarily) another man, consummates it, gets divorced and observes a three-month waiting period called ‘iddat’.

The big question is does Islam really permit this? The answer is an equally big NO. The abhorrent practice of Nikah Halala is not mentioned or sanctioned in the Holy Quran. It is a word and a practice that is created by misogynist men for their own convenience.

Even instant triple talaq, also called as talaq-e-biddat, is not mentioned in the Holy Quran. It only came into being after the death of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). In December 2017, the Lok Sabha introduced the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill that made triple talaq a criminal offence with the wife and/or close relatives empowered to file an FIR against the talaq pronouncer. The triple talaq bill has now been deferred to the winter session of Parliament.

Holy Quran does NOT Sanction Nikah Halala

The Holy Quran (2:230) says, “And if he has divorced her (for the third time), then she is not lawful to him afterward until (after) she marries a husband other than him. And if the latter husband divorces her (or dies), there is no blame upon the woman and her former husband for returning to each other if they think that they can keep (within) the limits of Allah (SWT). These are the limits of Allah (SWT), which He makes clear to people who know.”

Thus, if the second husband dies, or if she doesn’t get along with him and it eventually ends up in divorce, the woman is free to go back to her first husband as it is halal (permissible). However, what needs to be noted is that a woman’s own free will should be exercised.

Remarriage of widows and divorcees was encouraged in Islam so that women could lead a stable family life if they desire. Hence, once the 3 month waiting period of ‘iddat’ is over, the woman could marry anyone else if she wanted or stay single as she wished. These verses were meant to protect women and not to exploit them as it’s happening these days.

Nikah Halala finds no place in the Holy Quran!

Besides, the second marriage should not happen with the sole intention of an immediate divorce so that she can remarry the first husband. Such kind of a marriage or practice is against the true essence and spirit of Islam.

In fact, the Holy Prophet (PBUH) rebuked such a practice by saying, “Curse be upon the one who marries a divorced woman with the intention of making her lawful for her former husband and upon the one for whom she is made lawful.” ~ Abu Dawud Book 005, Hadith Number 2071, Narated by Ali ibn AbuTalib.

Marriage is a serious institution and not to be made a mockery of. Nikah Halala is an un-Islamic practice that needs to be abolished.

Narrated by Abu Hurayrah; the Holy Prophet (PBUH) said, “There are three things which, whether undertaken seriously or in jest, are treated as serious: Marriage, divorce and taking back a wife (after a divorce which is not final).” ~ Sunan of Abu-Dawood, Hadith 2189.

Former Union Minister, Arif Mohammad Khan said, “The practice of nikah halala was designed by the clergy who wanted to create jobs for themselves after having given sanctity to instant talaq, which finds no sanction in the Quran.”

Ignoring, misunderstanding, and misinterpreting the verses given in the Holy Quran; men with patriarchal mind-set use these practices as per their convenience. Such men may be a minority, yet practices like nikah halala should be questioned or banned once and for all so that no woman is exploited in the guise of religious sanction.

We should not equate the ill-behaviour of some misogynist men with what Islam actually prescribes. It is sad and ironic that Islam which gave numerous rights to women ages ago; its women have been deprived of basic human rights by hypocritical opportunists and those who treat religion as business.