NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Centre to file its response to a plea by a Muslim woman, who sought to be governed by the Indian succession Act, 1925 instead of Shariat.
A bench of Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justices Sanjay Kumar and K V Viswanathan granted four weeks time to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to file an affidavit to the plea made by Safiya P M, general secretary of 'Ex-Muslims of Kerala'.
SC Seeks Centre’s Stand on Muslim Woman’s Right to Choose Succession Law
Appearing for the Centre, Mehta submitted before the bench that an interesting question has been raised by the petitioner. He said the petitioner lady is a born Muslim, and she says she does not believe in Shariat and thinks it is a regressive law.
The bench asked Mehta to file a counter affidavit. He sought three weeks to take instructions in the matter.
Muslim Woman Challenges Shariat, Wants Indian Succession Act to Apply
The court allowed him four weeks time and fixed the matter for hearing in the week beginning on May 5.
The plea said the petitioner wishes to get a declaration that she would not be governed by Muslim Personal Law for any of the matters listed in section 2 or 3 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, but there is no provision either in the Act or in the Rules wherein she can obtain such a certificate.
The woman sought a declaration that the persons who do not want to be governed by the Muslim Personal Law must be allowed to be governed by the secular law of the country, viz, the Indian Succession Act, 1925 both in the case of intestate and testamentary succession.
The plea said that the petitioner, a born Muslim woman to a non-practising Muslim father, who has not officially left the religion, is facing the peculiar problem in protecting her precious civil rights.
In India any person who is born as a Muslim is governed by the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937.
"As per Sharia law, the person who leaves her faith in Islam, will be ousted from her community and thereafter she is not entitled for any inheritance right in her parental property. Further, the petitioner is apprehensive about the application of the law in the case of her lineal descendant, her only daughter, if the petitioner officially leaves the religion," her plea stated.
