“Commissions, Committees, and Custodians of Muslim Personal Law in Postindependence India”

Abstract

Shah Bano was 63 years old when her husband divorced her in 1978. He refused to pay maintenance to her beyond a period of three months (iddat) claiming his obligation extended no further than three menstrual cycles of his wife. While the Court decided in favour of granting maintenance to Shah Bano in 1985, Parliament subsequently overturned the judgment through the Muslim Women's Act, 1986 to create alternate provisions. The case triggered a tremendous wave of protests simultaneously, against unfair provisions of Muslim law and against state's interference in matters of religion. This essay documents the pre-history of this iconic case to demonstrate that neither the controversy nor the judgement were novel as scholarship has repeatedly claimed. Family law had historically been a contentious arena that enabled conversations between the state and religion, courts and parliament, diverse social movements and co-religionists engaging all institutions central to Indian democracy.