Triple talaq is a form of divorce that was practiced in Islam, whereby a Muslim man could legally divorce his wife by pronouncing talaq (the Arabic word for divorce) three times. The pronouncement could be oral or written, or, in recent times, delivered by electronic means such as telephone, SMS, email or social media. The man did not need to cite any cause for the divorce and the wife need not have been present at the time of pronouncement.
In 2017, Indias Supreme Court outlawed the Islamic practice of "triple talaq" which allowed a Muslim man to divorce his wife in minutes just by saying "talaq" three times. Before the Supreme Court ruling, India was among a handful of countries that allowed triple talaq. The campaign by Muslim women and activists for outlawing the practice was championed by Indias Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The practice of triple talaq is not universal among Muslims across the world, as many other Islamic schools of thought prefer the divorce process to be deferred, in many cases over a period of three months. Many Islamic nations have barred the practice, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, although it is technically legal in Sunni Islamic jurisprudence. Triple talaq, in Islamic law, is based upon the belief that the husband has the right to reject or dismiss his wife with good grounds.
In 2019, Indias parliament approved a bill that makes the Muslim practice of "instant divorce" a criminal offense. Men found in breach of the new law can be jailed for up to three years. The bill was first tabled in 2017 but stalled in the upper house of parliament, where some MPs called it unfair. Islamic scholars say the Koran clearly spells out how to issue a divorce - it has to be spread over three months, allowing a couple time for reflection and reconciliation. Most Islamic countries, including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, have banned triple talaq, but the custom continued in India, which does not have a uniform set of laws on marriage and divorce that apply to every citizen.
