Triple talaq victim who became auto rickshaw driver
ALLAHABAD: Tabassum Bano along with her son struggled on the streets of Allahabad for a living.
She had moved to the Sangam city from Narsinghgarh village in Pratapgarh district in 2007. Her husband Mohd Naseem, a resident of Pakalpur of Mandhata block in Pratapgarh, whom she had married in 2001, suddenly gave triple talaq to her in 2006.
But destiny works in mysterious ways. An NGO run by sister Sheeba picked her from the streets and provided shelter and security. After a year, she started driving an e-rickshaw on rent and became the first female auto rickshaw driver plying on the streets of Allahabad.
Tabassum claims that her husband’s action followed her mother’s failure to fulfil his dowry demands. She lost her father while she was just a child.
“So he kicked me out of our house along with my three-yearold son Mohd Abdullah. Naseem even married another woman immediately. I ran to police and the court but finally he also divorced me in the court,” she said.
“The sudden talaq after undergoing physical torture for months was a shock. I was suddenly on the roads with a son in my arms. I struggled, battled with thoughts of suicide but lived on. Today I drive an auto to earn a living for me and my son. I welcome the Supreme Court order as I believe this would end such abuse and torture of Muslim women. Even Islam prohibits Talaq in anger, joke or fun,” said the 29-year-old whose son is now studying in a school run by the NGO.