An Indian woman has filed a case against her husband for allegedly divorcing her for having crooked teeth.
The incident occurred in Hyderabad, Telangana, according to an international news website.
The case was registered by Hyderabad Police. The woman, identified as Rukhsana Begum, claimed that her husband, Mustafa, gave her instant divorce by uttering ‘triple talaq’.
‘Triple talaq’ is a form of divorce where a man could legally divorce his wife by pronouncing talaq (the Urdu word for divorce) three times.
Begum also alleged that he and his parents regularly harassed her for dowry and imprisoned her in their house. “My in-laws locked me inside their house for 10 to 15 days,” she was quoted as saying.
“They used to torture me regularly and finally Mustafa said that he does not like me because of my crooked teeth and that he did not want to live with me anymore,” she added.
They had married on June 27 but on October 31, a police case was registered.
The case against Mustafa was registered under section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, Dowry Act and Triple Talaq Act.
In 2019 the Indian Parliament approved the bill that makes instant triple talaq a criminal offence since August 1, 2019.
About Begum’s case, a police inspector was quoted as saying: “We have received a complaint from Begum accusing her husband of pronouncing triple talaq as she has crooked teeth and harassing her for extra dowry.”
Begum said that when she was ill, her husband and in-laws sent her back to her parent’s house.
The Indian woman said: “I filed a complaint with the local police and my in-laws and Mustafa agreed to compromise. They said that they will take me back to their place.
“But on October 1, Mustafa came to my place and said that he would not take me back with him. He abused my parents and pronounced triple talaq,” Begum was quoted as saying.
He allegedly said “talaq” to her through a phone call on October 12.
According to a report by India Today, a case was registered on October 31, 2019 an investigation is underway.
