DIVORCE IN ISLAM

This was to discourage haste in divorce. By accepting a man’s three talaqs on the one occasion as final and irrevocable, he caused him to forfeit the right to revoke his initial decision, thus leaving him with no option but to proceed with the divorce. On the other hand, the Caliph had it in his power to fully compensate any woman affected by this ruling. For instance, he was in a position to guarantee her an honourable life in society and if, due to being divorced, she was in need of financial assistance, he could provide her with continuing maintenance from the government exchequer. Today, anyone who cites Umar’s ruling as a precedent in order to justify the finality of a divorce based on three utterances of the word talaq on a single occasion, should remember that his verdict will remain unenforceable, for the simple reason that he does not have the powers that Umar, as Caliph, possessed. Umar’s verdict was that of a powerful ruler of the time and not just that of a common man. It is necessary at this point to clear certain misunderstandings which have arisen, about the extent of agreement which existed on Umar’s ruling. Of all the Prophet’s Companions who were present at Madinah at that time, perhaps the only one to disagree was Ali. As a result of this, certain ulama (scholars) have come to the conclusion that the Prophet’s followers had reached a consensus on this matter. But the consensus reached was not on the general issue of divorce, but on the right of Muslim rulers to make temporary and exceptional rulings, as had been done by Umar. It is obvious that the Companions of the Prophet could never have agreed to annul a Quranic injunction or to modify for all time, a prescribed system of divorce. All that was agreed upon was that exceptional circumstances warranted exceptional rulings on the part of the Caliph. He was entitled to punish—in any manner he thought fitting—anyone who digressed from the Shariah. This right possessed by the ruler of the time is clearly established in the Shariah. Many other instances, not necessarily relating to personal disputes, can be cited of the exercise of this right. o The prescribed method of divorce ensures that it is a well considered, planned arrangement and not just a rash step taken in a fit of emotion.