In a far-reaching judgement, the Rajasthan High Court (HC) has refused to acknowledge the legal validity of a decree passed by the Qazi's Court, established by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, in a matter pertaining to matrimonial discord. The Qazi's court can at best work as a "reconciliation institution", the court has ruled ..

Mr. Justice Mohammed Yamin of the HC's principal seat in Jodhpur has ruled that the dissolution of marriage under the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, 1939, could be brought about only by a competent civil court on the grounds enumerated in it and not by the Qazi.

The judgement has brought to light the conflict between the operation of civil law of the country and the personal law of the minority community ... This is probably the first verdict expressly refusing to accord legal validity to the edicts of Qazi's courts. Shahnaz Bano, married to Mehmood Khan, alleging that she was being neglected and not maintained by her husband approached the Qazi of ... Kota for annulment of her marriage; ultimately, the marriage was dicsolved by the Central Court of Qazi situated in Patna. She remarried after the Qazi issued the decree for dissolution of marriage.

Following this, Mehmood Khan lodged a complaint of bigamy against her before the Judicial Magistrate, Rajsamand, who took cognisance against her under Section 494 (bigamy) of Indian Penal Code. Aggrieved by the order, Mrs. Shahnaz Bano first appealed to the Sessions Judge unsuccessfully and later moved the HC. Mrs. Shahnaz Bano's counsel contended that the Qazi had dissolved the marriage on the ground that her husband neglected and failed to provide her maintenance for more than two years, which was a legal ground under Section 2 of the Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act. ... The HC ... ruled that dissolution of marriage can be performed only by a competent civil court on the grounds mentioned in the Act and not by a Qazi appointed by AIMPLB. "Even if a Qazi is appointed under the Qazi's Act, 1880, his appointment shall not be deemed to confer any judicial or administrative powers on him", the court held, and refused to quash the trial court's order of cognisance. The Judge ... observed that the Qazi's courts could work as a reconciliation institution or an arbitrator which carries out extra-judicial settlement of disputes.

The judgement also cited a ruling of 1997 of the Rajasthan HC which had held that marriage under the Muslim law was a civil contract which could be broken without the intervention of court when the husband pronounced "Talaq".

Since Talaq is an unfettered right of 'a Muslim husband, it does not need the court's intervention, as opposed to the divorce sought by a Muslim wife. (Source: The Hindu, 13 April, 1999)