Kerala Man Arrested For Pronouncing Triple Talaq To Wife Over Phone

Abdulla Basith of Minagapally in Kollam district was arrested based on the complaint of his 20-year-old wife.

Kollam: A man was arrested for pronouncing triple talaq to his wife over the phone.

Chavara Police said the accused, Abdulla Basith, a resident of Minagappally in Kollam and an imam at a mosque, was arrested and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days, As per Indian law, pronouncing triple talaq is a criminal offence, and a man who misuses it can face up to three years in prison along with a fine.

Basith was arrested based on a complaint filed by his 20-year-old wife, a resident of Chavara in Kollam district. As per the complaint, Basith had concealed his first marriage and married again. Basith had kept his first wife in a rented house and his second wife (the complainant) was unaware of it. As the complainant got to know of Basith's previous marriage, an argument broke out between the two. The complainant alleged Basith subjected her to physical and mental harassment. He even threatened her with marrying for the third time.

As the confrontation persisted, the complainant returned to her parents' house. On January 19, Basith, who is an imam at the Utkulam mosque in Pathanamthitta, reportedly called her and pronounced triple talaq over the phone. Basing on the complaint, a case was registered under the provisions of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act. Various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including those related to harassment, were also applied to the case.

In August last year, defending its 2019 law criminalising triple talaq, the Centre had told the Supreme Court that the practice is 'fatal' for the social institution of marriage. In an affidavit filed in response to petitions challenging the law, the Union of India said despite the top court setting aside the practice in 2017, it has "not worked as a sufficient deterrent in bringing down the number of divorces by this practice" among the members of the community.