Aug 17, 2019, 11:25 AM IST
Kozhikode: Two weeks after the Parliament cleared the contentious Triple Talaq Bill, a Kerala man was arrested on Friday (August 16) for allegedly giving instant divorce to his wife. Kozhikode Police arrested EK Ussam under the Muslim Women Bill, 2019 and produced him before a court in Thamarassery on August 16. An arrest warrant was issued against the man last Thursday after his wife petitioned the court, according to the Mukkam Police. He is currently out on bail.
The Lok Sabha passed the Triple Talaq Bill on July 25 and got Rajya Sabha’s nod on July 30.
This is the first case and arrest in a triple talaq case in Kerala after the Parliament approved the bill last month. It is alleged that the accused gave instant divorce to his wife by uttering the word "talaq" (divorce) thrice. The new law The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019 makes talaq-e-biddat or any other similar form of talaq having the effect of instant and irrevocable divorce pronounced by a Muslim husband void and illegal. It makes it illegal to pronounce talaq three times in spoken, written or through SMS or WhatsApp or any other electronic chat in one sitting.