''Nikah halala'' ( ur, نکاح حلالہ), also known as ''tahleel'' marriage, is a practice in which a woman, after being divorced by
triple talaq
Divorce in Islam can take a variety of forms, some initiated by the husband and some initiated by the wife. The main traditional legal categories are ''talaq'' ( repudiation), ''khulʿ'' (mutual divorce or ransom divorce) Historically, the rules ...
, marries another man, consummates the marriage, and gets divorced again in order to be able to remarry her former husband. ''Nikah'' means
marriage
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
and ''halala'' means to make something
halal
''Halal'' (; ar, حلال, ) is an Arabic word that translates to "permissible" in English. In the Quran, the word ''halal'' is contrasted with ''haram'' (forbidden). This binary opposition was elaborated into a more complex classification kno ...
, or permissible. This form of marriage is haram (forbidden) according to the
hadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...
of Islamic prophet Muhammad. Nikah halala is practiced by a small minority of Muslims, mainly in countries that recognise the triple talaq.
Islamic law
In classical Islamic law, a husband may divorce by simply announcing to his wife that he repudiates her (
talaq
Divorce in Islam can take a variety of forms, some initiated by the husband and some initiated by the wife. The main traditional legal categories are ''talaq'' ( repudiation), ''khulʿ'' (mutual divorce or ransom divorce) Historically, the rules ...
).
[
] The initial declaration of talaq is a revocable repudiation (ṭalāq rajʿah) which does not terminate the marriage. The husband can revoke the divorce at any time during the waiting period (''‘
iddah
In Islam, ''iddah'' or ''iddat'' ( ar, العدة, al-ʿidda; "period of waiting") is the period a woman must observe after the death of her husband or after a divorce, during which she may not marry another man. One of its main purposes is to r ...
'') which lasts three full menstrual cycles. Resumption of sexual relations automatically retracts the repudiation. The divorce becomes final when the waiting period expires. This is called a "minor" divorce (''al-baynuna al-sughra'') and the couple can remarry. If the husband repudiates his wife for the third time, it triggers a "major" divorce (''al-baynuna al-kubra''), after which the couple cannot remarry without an intervening consummated marriage by the wife to another man.
[
] This is known as tahlil marriage or nikah halala. Making the third pronouncement irrevocable acts as a deterrent to rash repudiations.
There are
hadith
Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...
indicating that entering a tahleel marriage with the intention of divorcing so that the original spouses can remarry is forbidden (haraam).
Abu Dawood
Abū Dāwūd (Dā’ūd) Sulaymān ibn al-Ash‘ath ibn Isḥāq al-Azdī al-Sijistānī ( ar, أبو داود سليمان بن الأشعث الأزدي السجستاني), commonly known simply as Abū Dāwūd al-Sijistānī, was a scholar o ...
and
Ibn Majah
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Yazīd Ibn Mājah al-Rabʿī al-Qazwīnī ( ar, ابو عبد الله محمد بن يزيد بن ماجه الربعي القزويني; (b. 209/824, d. 273/887) commonly known as Ibn Mājah, was a medieval sch ...
reported that both the first husband (muhallil) and the temporary husband (muhallil lahu) were cursed by God, and Ibn Majah calls the temporary husband "a borrowed billy-goat".
Al-Hakim Nishapuri
Abu Abd-Allah Muhammad ibn Abd-Allah al-Hakim al-Nishapuri ( fa, أبو عبدالله محمد بن عبدالله الحاكم النيسابوري; 933 - 1014 CE), also known as ''Ibn al-Bayyiʿ'', was a Persian Sunni scholar and the leadin ...
adds that marriage should be based on genuine intentions, and that in the time of Muhammad, tahleel spouses would have been considered adulterers.
UK
A BBC report found that halala is practised in certain Pakistani
Muslim communities in the UK. The report uncovered many instances where women were socially and sexually exploited by local religious figures.
India
Petitions have been filed by a few Muslim women and rights organisations in the
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
against nikah halala.
Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan
Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan or BMMA ('Indian Muslim Women's Movement') is an autonomous, secular, rights-based mass organization led by Zakia Soman which fights for the citizenship rights of the Muslim women in India. The BMMA was formed in J ...
(BMMA) is one such petitioner. BMMA is a national movement of Muslim women in India. In March 2018, the Supreme Court issued notice to the Indian government on the issue of nikah halala and polygamy. The Indian government made its stand clear in favor of criminalizing the practice of nikah halala in apex court.
The Supreme Court of India will hear the petition against nikah halala and polygamy in Muslim communities from July 20, 2018. On September 13, 2018, a Muslim woman named Shabnam Rani was attacked with acid. She was one of the petitioners against the practice of nikah halala. Islamic radicals are the main suspects. On September 18, 2018 the Supreme Court asked the government to provide adequate security to the victim.
The
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) is a non-government organisation constituted in 1973 by that time Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal ...
is against the outlawing of Nikah Halala, though it feels that its use should be discouraged and restricted to the "rarest of rare situations".
Supreme Court lawyer and BJP leader, Ashwini Upadhyay filed a writ petition in the
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
against Nikah Halala and polygamy as violations of fundamental right to life and liberty.
Iran
Nikah halala and triple talaq are practiced among the
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
Sunni community of Iran. There has been pushback from women’s rights activists, lawyers and human rights activists.
In popular culture
* 1971 Persian language Iranian film ''
Nikah Halala (1971 film)
''Nikah Halala'' (English Title:The Interim Husband; Persian title: Mohallel, fa, محلل) is a 1971 Iranian Persian-language romance comedy directed by Nosrat Karimi and starring Karimi, Irene Zazians, Reza Karam Rezaei, Rouholah Mofidi, ...
''
* 1982 Hindi language film ''
Nikaah (film)
''Nikaah'' ( ''marriage contract'') is a 1982 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film produced and directed by B. R. Chopra. The film stars Raj Babbar, Deepak Parashar and Salma Agha in her Bollywood movie debut role. The film also had Asr ...
''
* 2015 Hindi language short film ''
Mister Come Tomorrow
''Mister, Come Tomorrow'' is a 2015 short film directed by Shamas Nawab Siddiqui and produced by Nawazuddin Siddiqui. It is the debut film of the latter as producer. The film deals with the controversial Islamic practice of Nikah halala
'' ...
''
* 2016 Pakistani Urdu language TV series ''
Hatheli (TV series)
''Hatheli'' ( ur, ; lit:''Palm''), is a Pakistani television drama serial that was first aired on 27 September 2016. It aired every Monday and Tuesday at 9:10 replacing '' Khwab Saraye''. Eshal Fayyaz made her second appearance on Hum TV after ...
''
* 2017 Marathi language film ''
Halal (film)
''Halal'' (Marathi: हलाल) is 2017 Marathi language social drama film, directed by national award-winning director Shivaji Lotan Patil and produced by Amol Kagne, Laxman Kagne under the banner of Amol Kagne Productions. It is their first ...
''
* 2018 Hindi language film ''
Ram Ki Janmabhoomi
''Ram Ki Janmabhoomi'' () is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language drama film directed by Sanoj Mishra. The film is produced and written by Jitendra Narayan Singh and stars Manoj Joshi and Govind Namdev. The movie deals with the controversial issue o ...
''
* 2019 Hindi language film ''Halala''
See also
*
Divorce in Islam
Divorce in Islam can take a variety of forms, some initiated by the husband and some initiated by the wife. The main traditional legal categories are ''talaq'' ( repudiation), ''khulʿ'' (mutual divorce or ransom divorce) Historically, the rules ...
*
Islamic view of marriage
In Islam, nikah is a contract between two people. Both the groom and the bride are to consent to the marriage of their own free wills. A formal, binding contract – verbal or on paper – is considered integral to a religiously valid Islami ...
*
Muslim Personal Law In India
All the Muslims in India are governed by the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937. This law deals with marriage, succession, inheritance and charities among Muslims. The Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939 deals with the circ ...
*
Nikah Halala
''Nikah halala'' ( ur, نکاح حلالہ), also known as ''tahleel'' marriage, is a practice in which a woman, after being divorced by triple talaq, marries another man, consummates the marriage, and gets divorced again in order to be able to ...
(1971 film)
*
Nikah misyar
A ''misyar marriage'' ( ar, زواج المسيار, nikah al-misyar or more often ''zawaj al-misyar'' "traveller's marriage") is a type of marriage contract allowed by some Sunni Muslims. The husband and wife thus joined are able to renounce ...
*
Nikah mut'ah
''Nikah mut'ah'' ar, نكاح المتعة, nikāḥ al-mutʿah, literally "pleasure marriage"; temporary marriage or Sigheh ( fa, صیغه ، ازدواج موقت) is a private and verbal temporary marriage contract that is practiced in Tw ...
Bibliography
* Salim, Arskal. Contemporary Islamic Law in Indonesia: Sharia and Legal Pluralism. United Kingdom, Edinburgh University Press, 2015.
Bakabuang Phenomenon in Minangkabay Society: A Covert Human Trafficking Action ~ ''Nelmawarni Nelmawarni'' Kafaah Journal of Gender Studies Volume 11 No. 2 (2021)
References
{{reflist
Marriage in Islam
Islamic terminology