Author: J.S. Ifthekhar
Publication: The Hindu
Date: January 18, 2004
URL: http://www.hindu.com/2004/01/18/stories/2004011804390600.htm
Oil rich Arabs wedding Hyderabadi
women and discarding them after fun-filled honeymoon is passé. The
latest trend appears to be to go in for short duration marriages. The name
of the game is "contract marriage."
The ageing grooms marry right royally
and give `talaq' after a fortnight or a month. In fact, the divorce papers
are signed by the hubby-to-be at the time of the "nikah" itself. On the
face of it the whole thing looks proper and straight. All this is possible
with some "khaziz" becoming willing tools in the hands of the unscrupulous
grooms.
A shocking case of a young girl
of Sultan Shahi in the Old City being married off thrice in a span of one
and half month has come to light recently. The girl (identity withheld)
has since been married to a local boy and is unwilling to speak about the
sordid chapter in her life. This is stated to be only the tip of the iceberg.
Such short-term marriages are rampant in the Old City with poverty-stricken
families falling an easy prey.
When contacted, Khazi Anjum Arifi,
secretary, Anjumane Qazat, A.P, admitted that occurrence of contract marriages
had come to his notice. He termed such nikhas "anti-Islamic" and in total
violation of Shariat rules. The Wakf Board Chairman, Mohd. Saleem, said
severe action would be taken against the erring khazis if a written complaint
is made. A decade ago marriage of minor girls to Arab grand-dads rocked
the nation. Ameena, the child bride who was married off to a 60-plus Saudi
national, typifies the reprehensible practice of poor parents marrying
off their daughters in return for monetary benefits. Following a public
outcry, police cracked down on forced marriages of young girls with foreign
nationals.
The racket has now surfaced in a
different form with some pliable khazis bending the Shariat rules and conducting
``contract marriages''. Following the Ameena episode the Wakf Board had
instructed khazis to immediately alert it whenever they were called upon
to perform a nikah involving a foreign national. According to informed
sources, the khazis who perform such marriages have their own agents who
scout for the foreign bridegroom. At the time of nikah, the khazi reportedly
takes the signature of the unsuspecting bride on the divorce papers. But
the date of divorce is not mentioned. When his time for leaving the country
comes, the foreign nationals quietly send their wives to the parents' home
and inform the khazi. The next day the latter delivers the `talaqnama'
to the girl after filling in the date.
