Self-styled chief judges and head judges operating out of their dingy Bhendi Bazar and Nagpada offices – are twisting the laws of Shariah to serve a clientele largely comprising of Arabs. Nikahs are being held and talaqs being sanctioned for clients willing to pay the price, with little regard for Islamic laws and conventions.

In the past few months the city's Muslim-dominated areas have witnessed a rash of offices opened by these self- appointed guardians of law - Qazi-ul-Quzzats (the supreme Islamic judges) and Raeesul Quzzats (the head judges). Although Islamic laws allow only one chief judge in a city, there are at least 60 operating in Mumbai ...

(Recently) Yasmeen's story made headlines ...Eighteen-year-old Yasmeen was married to three different Arabs over a span of 19 months. Two of her grooms were 50 and 70-year-old men. Yasmeen's second marriage was dissolved in 10 days and she was married for the third time within 20 days, in violation of the iddat - a mandatory gap of three months and 10 days that must separate a woman's divorce and her next marriage. Two of these marriages were performed by Qazi Farid Ahmed Khan.

In another case, Rukhsana (16) of Mumbai, was married to an Arab on April 23 this year and divorced on April 26. Even decrees like absolute divorce (talaqe-moghallezza) are being arbitrarily issued by these qazis.

Qazi Farid Ahmed Khan is ... very popular among the Arabs as a majority of such marriages take place at his ... office ... Khan did not deny marrying off Muslim girls to Arabs. He, however, said: "Arabs can get any girl they want. At least, nikah is a legal way. We are not involved in any unscrupulous practices. We marry off a girl only after making a lot of enquiries about the prospective grooms." But he cannot explain (the) Yasmeen case ..

Meanwhile, the highest office of Sunni Muslims in the state, Idara-e-Shariah Maharashtra State, has confirmed receiving several complaints against such qazis. The state mufti, Ashraf Raza, said: "These qazis are frauds. Forget absolute divorce ... they are not empowered to even annul a marriage". Raza said he was contemplating action against these "brokers of adultery". (Source: The Indian Express, 27 August, 1998).