The Supreme Court has ruled that a Muslim woman is entitled to the return from her divorced husband of money and gold items that were gifted by her parents or relatives at the time of the marriage under The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986.
A bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh passed the judgment while allowing the appeal of Rousanara Begum challenging a Calcutta High Court judgment of January 2024 that she was not entitled to the return.
The high court passed the impugned order on an appeal filed by the divorced husband, S.K. Salahuddin, who had challenged a trial court directive for the return of ₹7 lakh in cash, besides gold ornaments, which he had received at the time of their marriage.
“The Constitution of India prescribes an aspiration for all, i.e. equality, which is, obviously, yet to be achieved. Courts, in doing their bit to this end, must ground their reasoning in social justice adjudication. To put it in context, the scope and object of the 1986 Act are concerned with securing the dignity and financial protection of a Muslim woman post her divorce, which aligns with the rights of a woman under Article 21 of the Constitution of India,” Justice Sanjay Karol, who passed the judgment, observed.
In this case, the couple were married on August 28, 2005. They got divorced on December 13, 2011.