Patna: A Muslim woman in Bihar committed suicide after being handed a “triple talaq” notice by her husband.

This is the first such incident in Bihar after India’s top court struck down the practice of instant divorce last month saying the practice was “void, unislamic and unconstitutional”.

The incident took place in Dhaboul village, under Pranpur police station, in Katihar district, some 350km east of Patna, on Thursday.

As per reports, the victim, Julekha Khatoon, was married to Shaikh Shehjan about a year ago. Both hailed from the same village and knew each other before tying the knot, but soon after marriage, differences crept in and quarrels became routine.

Villagers tried to restore peace in the family but on Thursday the man issued an instant divorce notice to his wife.

Julekha’s family members said she was so shocked after hearing “triple talaq” that she rushed to her parents’ home, locked herself in a room and committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling fan.

Soon after her death, the villagers held court and imposed a fine of Rs200,000 (Dh11,337) on the victim’s husband, blaming him for the death. The court also asked him to return all the dowry he had accepted at the time of marriage.

The incident comes exactly a month after the Supreme Court by a majority verdict ruled that the Islamic practice of instant divorce through triple talaq is “illegal and unconstitutional”.

The apex court by a 3:2 verdict held that the Muslim instant divorce law is against the basic tenets of Islam and asked the government to legislate a law in Parliament. The majority of the judges said the practice violated the Indian constitution. The five-member bench led by Chief Justice of India Justice J.S. Khehar heard the case.

The panel of five judges had representation from different faiths: Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.

The bench comprised Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar, Justice Kurian Joseph, Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, Justice Uday Umesh Lalit and Justice S. Abdul Nazeer. The top court had reserved its decision since the hearing concluded in May.