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Indian Man Annuls Marriage in 24 hours over Dowry, Sparks Twitterstorm

New Delhi (Sputnik): A man in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has allegedly divorced his wife of 24 hours over dowry disputes using the Islamic system of ‘Triple Talaq’, or by proclaiming divorce thrice.
Sputnik

The relatives of Shahe Alam, the bridegroom, allegedly demanded a motorbike as a dowry, but the bride’s side failed to fulfil their wish.

The incident ignited social media over the Triple Talaq Bill tabled recently in the Indian Parliament which seeks to penalise offenders.

The avalanche of comments on Twitter included those that sympathised with the woman and asked for stringent laws to stop the triple talaq practice.

​Some took a dig at the actress and former Miss India Pooja Batra who recently married Muslim actor Nawaab Shah, warning her about Islamic law.

The marriage took place on 13 July.

The bride’s father filed a complaint against the bridegroom and his 12 family members under the Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961 after the bridegroom demanded a motorbike as dowry and refused to back down.

The Triple Talaq Bill, which prohibits the Islamic form of divorce – a practice, which allows a Muslim to divorce his wife by simply saying "Talaq" three times in succession, wasn't approved by Indian parliament during Narendra Modi's first-term.

It was tabled again in Parliament as "The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill" on 17 July 2019. The yet to be ratified bill provides for a three-year jail term, for offenders that divorce by saying 'talaq' three times.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has addressed the issue many times, and described the Bill as “justice for Muslim women”.

 

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