Introduction



The
absence of the Uniform Civil Code in India has always helped many culprits to
hide behind the veil of family laws. Sometimes, the denial of justice has been
seen as inevitable due to such family laws. Mohammad Ahmed Khan vs. Shah Bano
Begam case can be considered as one of the most debatable cases in India, which
showed the superiority of religious-based politics and religious-based rituals
over the Indian judiciary. 




This case was about the protection of the right of a
Muslim woman, Shah Bano Begum, who was the spouse of Mohammad Ahmed Khan. The
refusal of paying maintenance to Shah Bano Begam as a consequence of divorce
was the reason behind this case. However, the interference of the Indian The government in the judicial matter through its legislative power ultimately
protected the accused to be convicted.


Facts



1.      In
1932, Shah Bano Begum was married to Mohammad Ahmed Khan, who was a lawyer by
profession. 


2.      The
couple had five children


3.      Mohammad
Ahmed Khan, the husband of Shah Bano Begum married to another woman after 14
years of his first marriage.


4.      In
1975, at the age of 62 years, Shah Bano Begum was divorced by Mohammad Ahmed
Khan


5.      Shah
Bano Begam was displaced from home by Mohammad Ahmed Khan.


6.      Mohammad
Ahmed Khan refused to pay the promised maintenance of Rs. 200 per month to Shah
Bano Begam.


7.      In
1978 Shah Bano Begum made an appeal to the court for maintenance.


8.      In
November 1978, Mohammad Ahmed Khan divorced Shah Bano Begam by uttering “Triple
Talaq”.


9.      The
ground of the divorce as stated by Mohammad Ahmed Khan was the argument and
conflict between the children of Shah Bano and the second wife of Mohammad
Ahmed Khan.


10.  Mohammad
Ahmed Khan refused to pay any kind of alimony or maintenance to Shah Bano Begum
after such divorce. However, as per the marriage agreement, he had to pay
maintenance of Rs. 200 per month.


11.  The
local court of Indore had made an order to Mohammad Ahmed Khan to pay
maintenance to his divorced wife, Shah Bano Begam at the rate of Rs. 25 per
month.


12.  Against
the verdict of the local court, Shah Bano Begum appealed to Madhya Pradesh High
Court for revising the decision.


13.  Madhya
Pradesh High Court revised the judgment and ordered Mohammad Ahmed Khan to pay a monthly maintenance of Rs. 179.20. 


14.  This
judgment was challenged in the Supreme Court




15.  Mohammad
Ahmed Khan denied to pay maintenance on the ground of the illegality (Haram) of
such payment under the Islamic Law






Issues of the Case



The
issues in this were,


a.       Applicability
of Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure on Muslim women


b.      Liability
of husbands of paying maintenance to his wife after divorce in addition to the
Mehr








c.       Applicability
of Uniformed Civil Code to all religions 







Now, we need to have a brief understanding of the following terms:



1. What is Mehr?


According
to Muslim Law, Mehr is a mandatory payment of money (or any other property) by
a bride to a groom on the occasion of marriage.





2. What is Iddat?


Iddat is the period, which a Muslim woman has to observe after divorce or after the
death of her husband. Generally, this period lasts for three (3) months.  





3. What is section 125 of the Code
of Criminal Procedure (CrPC)?


CrPC
125 provides a guideline regarding payment of maintenance to a wife by her
husband. In case of a divorce, a husband must pay maintenance to his wife if
his wife is unable to maintain herself.





4. What is the period of
maintenance under Muslim Law?

According to the
Muslim Law, a husband is to pay maintenance up to the period of Iddat 





 Judgment



In
order to give judgment, the Honorable Supreme Court suspended the plea of
Mohammad Ahmed Khan. In addition, the Supreme Court of India validated the
verdict of the High Court. In this case, the Supreme Court held the following
judgments.


a.  The
Muslim Law regarding the payment of maintenance only up to the period was
identified as against humanity


b.      Section
125 of the CrPC was held applicable for the Muslim women








c.       Mohammad
Ahmed Khan was held liable for paying maintenance according to the CrPC Section
125. 


Parliamentary Reaction on the
Judgment



The
political influence over the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court had been
witnessed after the verdict of the apex court came into operation. In this
context, we have to zoom in to the political scenario of that time. At this
time, the Government of India was under the Prime Ministership of Rajiv Gandhi.
He had lost several state elections and some Muslim-majority constituencies.
Due to political insecurity and pressures from the Muslim hardliners within his
own party, the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights of Divorce) Act, 1986 was
enacted by the parliament. This law was identical to the Muslim Family Law as
per the rights of divorced women are concerned. According to the stated law,
the husband is liable to pay maintenance up to the period of Iddat (90 days).
This law was enacted at a retrospective effect and due to which, the
jurisdiction of the Supreme Court was nullified.


The
advocate of Shah Bano Begum challenged the constitutional validity of the law
to the Supreme Court. However, due to continuous pressure from her own society,
Shah Bano withdrew her claim of maintenance.





Conclusion



From
the Shah Bano Case, we can see that the constitutional rights of women in our the country are nothing but a good point for the scripts of our political leaders
for their lectures. Implementation of constitutional rights not only
depends upon our judiciary system but also on the influence or power or society
or religion of the aggrieved party. Apparently, this legal case was between
Shah Bano Begum versus Mohamad Ahmed Khan, however, the fight between the
liberal Muslims and hardliner Muslims were also evident in this case.

















Bibliography



Indiankanoon.org