Pakistan plans punishment for instant talaq

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Pakistan is planning to make instant divorce a punishable offence, chief of top Islamic body, which advises the government, said.

In an interview with BBC, Council of Islamic Ideology chairman Dr Qibla Ayaz said that recommendations had been prepared in this regard and would be presented before the Parliament soon. Dr Ayaz said, “We are preparing a bill to be presented before the law ministry which will suggest punishment for the action. The act of instantly issuing three divorces in one sitting will be declared prohibited and a punishable offence.”

He said that women are important part of social activities and there was no prohibition on their becoming part of economic activities.

To a question regarding declaring DNA concrete evidence, he said that scientists and fuqaha ( Islamic scholars) would be consulted in this respect.

Pakistan triple talaq issued its Family Law abolished when it Muslim Ordinance

Council of Islamic Ideology chairman Dr Qibla Ayaz said that the organisation will prepare a bill to make instant triple talaq a punishable offence

◗ Pakistan abolished triple talaq when it issued its Muslim Family Law Ordinance in 1961

in 1961. The country revisited its marital laws after controversy erupted in 1955, when the then Prime Minister Muhammad Ali Bogra married his secretary without divorcing his wife. The consequent protests compelled the government to put together a seven- member Commission to take a look at Marriage and Family Laws, according to a media report.

One of the key recommendations of this Commission was that the utterance of talaq thrice in a single session, should be counted as one. In other words, triple talaq or “instant” talaq should become invalid.