Court ruled,Marriage of Muslim woman during 'iddat' not void

As the issue of triple talaq is being debated in the Supreme Court, a city court has ruled that the marriage performed by a Muslim woman during the 'iddat' (waiting) period is not void.

The Delhi court dismissed the claim of a man, accused of domestic violence by his wife, that their wedding was invalid as the per Islamic law, as she had not completed 'iddat' after getting a divorce from her first husband.

"Any marriage performed by a Muslim woman during the iddat period is an irregular marriage and not a void (batil) marriage. Hence, the contention of the man on this aspect is found to be without any merits," Special Judge Bhupesh Kumar said while relying on a Supreme Court observation.

The court said there was "sufficient evidence" to issue notice to the Muslim man, who worked with the Coal India Ltd in Chhattisgarh, under the domestic violence act, saying "even depriving aggrieved person economically or financially amounts to domestic violence."

"As per Islamic law, the female cannot remarry during 'iddat' period and any marriage taking place during 'Iddat' period cannot be termed as valid marriage," he said, adding that the woman got divorced from her first husband on October 4, 2012 and the second nikah was performed two days later.

The court also rejected the man's contention that the provisions of Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (PWDV) Act are not attracted as there are no allegations of physical, sexual or verbal abuse in the application.