India’s supreme court has banned the controversial Muslim practice of instant divorce in a ruling that furthers women’s rights but which some fear will inflame tensions between Muslims and the country’s Hindu majority.
Judges ruled on Tuesday that “instant triple talaq” — which allows Muslim men to divorce their wives by saying “talaq, talaq, talaq” — was illegal under the Indian constitution. Hindu men do not have the same rights and must prove in court that their wives have wronged them to be granted a divorce.
The issue has divided Indians and even attracted the attention of Narendra Modi, the country’s Hindu nationalist prime minister, who last week argued that a ban would be a “significant step towards women’s empowerment”.