FACT SHEET: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child
THE DISSOLUTION OF MUSLIM MARRIAGES ACT, 1939
An Act to consolidate and clarify the provisions of Muslim law relating to suits for dissolution of marriage by women married under Muslim law and to remove doubts as to the effect of the renunciation of Islam by a married Muslim woman on her marriage tie.
Whereas it is expedient to consolidate and clarify the provisions of Muslim law relating to suit for dissolution of marriage by women married under Muslim law and to remove doubts as to the effect of the renunciation of Islam by a married Muslim woman on her marriage tie; It is hereby enacted as follows:
- Short title and extent. (1) This Act may be called the Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, 1939.
(2) It extends to the whole of India i [1] [except the State of Jammu and Kashmir].
- Grounds for decree for dissolution of marriage.
A woman married under Muslim law shall be entitled to obtain a decree for the dissolution of her marriage on any one or more of the following grounds, namely:
- that the whereabouts of the husband have not been known for a period of four years;
- that the husband has neglected or has failed to provide for her maintenance for a period of two years;
- that the husband has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of seven years or upwards;
- that the husband has failed to perform, without reasonable cause, his marital obligations for a period of three years;
- that the husband was impotent at the time of the marriage and continues to be so;
- that the husband has been insane for a period of two years or is suffering from leprosy or a virulent venereal disease;
- that she, having been given in marriage by her father or other guardian before she attained the age of fifteen years, repudiated the marriage before attaining the age of eighteen years: Provided that the marriage has not been consummated;
- that the husband treats her with cruelty, that is to say,
- habitually assaults her or makes her life miserable by cruelty of conduct even if such conduct does not amount to physical ill-treatment, or (b) associates with women of evil repute or leads an infamous life, or (c) attempts to force her to lead an immoral life, or (d) disposes of her property or prevents her exercising her legal rights over it, or (e) obstructs her in the observance of her religious profession or practice, or (f) if he has more wives than one, does not treat her equitably in accordance with the injunctions of the Quran;
(ix) on any other ground which is recognized as valid for the dissolution of marriages under Muslim law: Provided that,
(a) no decree shall be passed on ground (iii) until the sentence has become final;
(b) a decree passed on ground (i) shall not take effect for a period of six months from the date of such decree, and if the husband appears either in person or through an authorized agent within that period and satisfied the Court that he is prepared to perform his conjugal duties, the Court shall set aside the said decree; and
(c) before passing a decree on ground (v) the Court shall, on application by the husband, made an order requiring the husband to satisfy the Court within a period of one year from the date of such order that he has ceased to be impotent, and if the husband so satisfies the Court within such period, no decree shall be passed on the said ground.
Comments Section 2 of the Act deals with the right of a woman married under Muslim Law to obtain a decree for dissolution that her husband assaults her or makes her life miserable by cruelty. If any incident perpetrated by the husband with cruelty had made her communal life miserable then that would amount to cruel treatment as envisaged in the clause. Held, it was a cruelty to force a young woman, who was desirous of becoming a mother, to abort her pregnancy and some drug was administered to her and miscarriage occurred consequently. (Siddique v. Amina, 1996(1) DMC 87)
- Notice to be served on heirs of the husband, when the husband’s whereabouts are not known. In a suit to which clause (i) of Section 2 applies (a) the names and addresses of the persons who would have been the heirs of the husband under Muslim law if he had died on the date of the filing of the plaint shall be stated in the plaint, (b)notice of the suit shall be served on such persons, and (c) such persons shall have the right to be heard in the suit: Provided that paternal uncle and brother of the husband, if any, shall be cited as party even if he or they are not heirs. 4. Effect of conversion to another faith. The renunciation of Islam by a married Muslim woman or her conversion to a faith other than Islam shall not be itself operate to dissolve her marriage: Provided that after such renunciation, or conversion, the woman shall be entitled to obtain a decree for the dissolution of her marriage on any of the grounds mentioned in Section 2: Provided further that the provisions of this section shall not apply to a woman converted to Islam from some other faith who re-embraces her former faith. 5. Rights to dower not to be affected. Nothing contained in this Act shall affect any right which a married woman may have under Muslim law to her dower or any part thereof on the dissolution of her marriage.
- [Repeal of Section 5 of Act 26 of 1937. Rep. by the Repealing and Amending Act, 1942 (25 of 1942)].
LIFT UP YOURSELF
To lead a happy life is the aim of everyone since ages. In the present day turbulent environment, it is very important that you acquire some knowledge and learn some techniques to remain fit and fine to lead a happy life. For this, one of such techniques is to build up your self esteem. By definition, self esteem is considered an important component of emotional health that encompasses both self-confidence and self-acceptance. It is the emotional way the individuals perceive themselves or make evaluation of themselves, and how well they do things that are important to them. So, to work efficiently and effectively, you need to have your self esteem high.
These are some ways to build up your self esteem to lead a happy life:
- Health: Maintain and improve your health. Healthy people have a positive outlook of life. They feel better and important. So, remain neat and clean, try to be smart and attractive, be well dressed, eat less and balanced diet, have moderate sleep, brisk walk, jog or exercise for about thirty minutes a day regularly or during most days of the week to remain physically fit. Physically and mentally healthy people have positive outlook of the world and themselves.
- Finance: Take care of your financial health. If your job, business and assets are safe and improving, your self esteem is high. It is said that “do not keep all your eggs in one basket”. Investment in different sources of income may save you from odd days. But, if you have strong reasons that investment in one lot is okay, you may do it. Anyhow, try to manage your property, wealth, income and expenditures in a suitable way.
- Family: Healthy family relations are not only buffer zone during odd days rather, healthy family ties boost up your morale, and give you comfort and enjoyment in close relationships that keeps your self esteem high. Healthy family relations are source of pleasure, happiness and long life. Spend your time with family members in sharing, helping, warmth, acceptance, enjoyment and happiness.
- Goals: Plan years, months and days of your life with long and short term goals. Your goals should be: Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely, with Evaluation and Review (SMARTER). People who lead their life with suitable goals and struggle to achieve them, live a longer life as compared with those who do not make appropriate goals to achieve for. Goals also make your life purposeful with a sense of direction and achievement.
- Belief: Along with planning your goals, you should believe in that you are capable of doing it. Keep your ‘vision’ strong and clear in your mind. Suitable verbal and visual reminders of your goals with strong belief in your abilities may keep you on the right track.
- Motivation: Moderate to strong motivation to achieve your life goals is very important. Remain inspired, energized, and look at the bright side of the things and events. Develop positive thinking and remain focused on your short and long term goals. Temporary obstacles and setbacks should not make you off track. Boost up your morale with self confidence, and pump up yourself with your abilities, achievements and strong determination when need arises.
- Social Work: Try to help others. The poor, needy, sick, week and deprived people should be cared and helped as our moral obligations. Giving away any form of material, moral or psychological assistance to deserving people would give you a lot of satisfaction and pleasure. Be a part of community social work whatsoever small it may be. Helping others also gives you spiritual relief and elevation.
- Spiritual Peace: Everyone has a limited life span in this world. Imagine of the Supreme Being, the Creator and Sustainer of this universe. Do your good for its own sake. Remain connected with the Lord of the Universe during your good and bad days. Be thankful to Him for His innumerable blessings and have patience and peace in all situations of life.
The researches have indicated that the people who have good physical and mental health, financial stability, strong family ties, and well planned goals with high motivation, participation in social activities and trust in God for spiritual peace, have high self-esteem as compared to those who do not score well on these indicators. So, by adopting such techniques, you may boost your self esteem, lift up yourself and enjoy your life.