A Muslim woman (name withheld) has filed a complaint with the Yamunagar police in Haryana, accusing her husband and her brother-in-law of committing rape.
As per the complaint, the husband of the victim threw her out of the house on 10th August 2022. He had severed their marriage through the proclamation of triple talaq, which has been held unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.
A police case was registered against the accused husband on 22nd April this year under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 354 (Assault to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 498 (enticing married woman with criminal intent) and Sections 3 and 4 of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act of 2019.
Husband rapes victim under pretext of ‘remarriage’
The in-laws of the victim relented and urged her to withdraw the case on 4th September this year. They told the victim that her husband would come to meet her and marry her again.
On 2nd October 2023, the woman’s husband raped her under the pretext of spending the night together. He raped her again on the following day. All the while the accused kept promising to take her to Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh to marry her.
On 4th October this year, he dropped the victim near his house in Saharanpur and asked her to walk home. The accused husband assured the woman that he would come home after some time.
Mother-in-law justifies rape in the name of Halala
Later, his brother came to the victim’s room and raped her. He told her that she could not marry her husband again without Halala.
When the victim narrated the ordeal to her mother-in-law, she rationalised the act of rape by claiming that Halala is permissible in Islam.
Forced by circumstances, the woman filed a complaint with the Saharanpur police but they reportedly did not register a First Information Report (FIR). The victim then filed a complaint at the Yamunanagar police station.
The cops registered a zero FIR and sent the case to the Saharanpur police.
