Epigraph:

Divorce can happen twice, and [each time] wives either be kept on in an acceptable manner or released in a good way. It is not lawful for you to take back anything that you have given [your wives], except where both fear that they cannot maintain [the marriage] within the bounds set by God: if you [arbiters] suspect that the couple may not be able to do this, then there will be no blame on either of them if the woman opts to give something for her release. a These are the bounds set by God: do not overstep them. It is those who overstep God’s bounds who are doing wrong.

If a husband re-divorces his wife after the second divorce, she will not be lawful for him until she has taken another husband; if that one divorces her, there will be no blame if she and the first husband return to one another, provided they feel that they can keep within the bounds set by God. These are God’s bounds, which He makes clear for those who know.

When you divorce women and they have reached their set time, then either keep or release them in a fair manner. Do not hold on to them with intent to harm them and commit aggression: anyone who does this wrongs himself. Do not make a mockery of God’s revelations; remember the favor He blessed you with, and the Scripture and wisdom He sent to teach you. Be mindful of God and know that He has full knowledge of everything.

When you divorce women and they have reached their set time, do not prevent them from remarrying their husbands if they both agree to do so in a fair manner. Let those of you who believe in God and the Last Day take this to heart: that is more wholesome and purer for you. God knows and you do not. (Al Quran 2:229-233)

Nikah halala (Urdu: نکاح حلالہ), also known as tahleel marriage,^[1] is a practice in which a woman, after being divorced by her husband by triple talaq, marries another man, consummates the marriage, and gets divorced again in order to be able to remarry her former husband.^[2] Nikah means marriage and halala means to make something halal, or permissible.^[3] This form of marriage is haram (forbidden) according to the hadith of Islamic prophet Muhammad.^[4][5] Nikah halala is practiced by a small minority of Muslims, mainly in countries that recognise the triple talaq.^[6][7]

Triple talaq (instant divorce)^[1] and talaq-e-mughallazah (irrevocable divorce)^[2] are now-banned means of Islamic divorce previously available to Muslims in India, especially adherents of Hanafi Sunni Islamic schools of jurisprudence.^[3][4] A Muslim man could legally divorce his wife by proclaiming three times consecutively the word talaq (the Arabic word for “divorce”) (in spoken, written or, more recently, electronic form).

The use and status of triple talaq in India has been a subject of controversy and debate. Those questioning the practice have raised issues of justice, gender equality, human rights and secularism. The debate has involved the Government of India and the Supreme Court of India, and is connected to the debate about a uniform civil code (Article 44) in India.^[5] On 22 August 2017, the Indian Supreme Court deemed instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddah) unconstitutional.^[6][7][8] Three of the five judges in the panel concurred that the practice of triple talaq is unconstitutional.^[9] The remaining two declared the practice to be constitutional.^[10] On 30 July 2019, the Parliament of India declared the practice of Triple Talaq illegal and unconstitutional and made it a punishable act from 1 August 2019.^[11] Three of India’s neighbouring countries — Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka — are among the 23 countries worldwide that have banned triple talaq.^[12] The Quran describes mechanisms for avoiding hasty divorces, prescribing two waiting periods of three months before the divorce is final in order to give the husband time to reconsider his decision.^[13] A bench of the Supreme Court of India has stated that the practice of divorce for Muslim men through, “Talaq-e-Hasan” which is pronounced once a month over a period of three months is allowed and a Muslim woman can also part ways with her husband through “khula (mutually agreed divorce)”.^[14][15]

Some BJP commentators have suggested that the banning of triple talaq opens the door to challenging more Muslim marital practices, including polygamy.^[16]