Muslim Woman Petitions The Kerala High Court, Raising Concerns About The 90-Day Waiting Period After Divorce

After divorcing her spouse through 'khula,' a Muslim woman has petitioned the Kerala high court to be exempted from the customary 90-day 'iddah' waiting period before remarrying. The 25-year-old Thalassery woman claimed she had been living apart from her spouse for almost two years and had not had intercourse with him throughout that time. She maintained that 'Iddah,' which is used, among other things, to identify the paternity of a child born after a divorce, is unnecessary.

As per the plea, she is willing to provide medical evidence that she is not pregnant. A division bench comprised of Justice A Muhamed Mustaque and Justice Sophy Thomas granted a stay on a family court ruling of November 19 preventing her from remarrying after 'khula,' a divorce procedure initiated by a woman, while hearing the plea throughout an admission hearing on Thursday. The Supreme Court ruled in April of this year that 'khula' is legal.

The woman married in July 2017 and has been living separately since June 2019, consistent with the petition filed by counsel TP Sajid. Her husband allegedly chased her and her one-year-old boy out of their matrimonial home after she questioned filthy messages from a lady on her husband's phone.

From the month of February of the last year, it explained that the petition seeking divorce, the return of gold jewellery, and the payment of support has been pending in the Thalassery family court. Furthermore, the HC decision that a woman can begin divorce through 'khula' was given, and the woman submitted her husband a notice of divorce through 'khula' on October 21. Meanwhile, in response to a petition filed by the husband seeking return of conjugal rights, a family court in Ernakulam granted a ruling prohibiting her from getting into a second marriage on the pretext of 'khula.'