The Muslim women’s rights organisation Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) recently published a book on polygamy and conducted a survey of Muslim women who are its victims.
A survey of 250 Muslim women served as the basis for the book, ‘Status of Women in Polygamous Marriages and Need for Legal Protection.’ Dr. Noorjehan Safia Niaz, co-founder of BMMA, and Zakia Soman wrote the book. More than ten states were covered by both surveys.
The women’s group is reviving its call for a ban on polygamy and its criminalization through this book. ‘We will revive the demand to ban polygamy and halala, which were not dealt with by the Supreme Court while dealing with Triple Talaq in our petition. If women in Hindu, Sikh, Jain, and Buddhist religions are protected by IPC section 494, why should Muslim women be denied this legal protection?’ asked Niaz.
At the book launch, there were a lot of polygamy victims in attendance. One such victim, Irfana Qureshi, stated: ‘I found that my husband had previously been married twice after we got married. I was subjected to torture and domestic abuse. I’m working with the area police to file a case against my husband.’
According to the survey, 84% of women believe that polygamy should be made illegal and 73% think that husbands who engage in it should face consequences. The survey on polygamous relationships found that 50% of the women experience mental trauma, including depression, self-blame, and suicidal thoughts.
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