Bihar woman being forced to remarry ex-husband by in-laws after triple talaq

'Nikah Halala' requires a woman, divorced by triple talaq, to marry another man, consummate the marriage, and get divorced again in order to be able to remarry her former husband.

Pic Credit: File Photo

Patna: A woman in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district was given triple talaq and now the in-laws are putting pressure on her to undergo 'Nikah Halala' with her brother-in-law in order to remarry her former husband and stay in the house.

'Nikah Halala', 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 remarry her former husband.

The incident came to light after the woman refused the offer and wrote a letter to the human rights commission. A team of the human rights commission visited her house in Muzaffarpur and assured her of justice.

The victim was married to a person in a village that comes under Sakra police station in the district five years ago and she has a child as well. Her husband was applying pressure on her to bring Rs 10 lakh cash and 5 tola gold (50 grammes) as dowry from her father.

This led to a Panchayat in Sakra village one and a half years ago where her husband gave her triple talaq in front of the Sarpanch (headman) and other Panchayat members. Since then, the victim was trying to negotiate with her husband to at least let her stay in his house. Her husband and in-laws asked her to undergo Halala with his brother-in-law first and then he would be ready for remarriage with her.

The victim refused and wrote to the national human rights commission about the matter.