Three or One Talaq? An Analysis of Some Fresh Fatwas on the Legal Effect of Three Talaq in One Session in Pakistan and India

Abstract

There is no consensus among the ahl al-hadith ‘ulama regarding the issue that three talaq in one session amount to one, because, there are two leading ahl al-hadith scholars who favour the view of the jamhur, i.e. three repudiations in one session amounts to three. Today, Many Muslim states have explicitly adopted the position of Ibn Taymiyyah on triple talaq. Several new fatwas regarding triple talaq given by some leading ‘ulama in India are not so new but are the re-statement of the position of Hanafi scholar Qadi Khan (6th/12th). The position taken by Tahir Mahmud on triple talaq against the Hanafi school is not supported by any evidence from Hanafi sources.

Keywords: three talaq, ahl al-hadith, ahnaf, fatwa on triple talaq, opinions on triple talaq, section 7 of MFLO, triple talaq and Indian High courts