My first meeting was with Dr Shariq Nisar, an Indian finance professional, who has also co-founded a Sharia Advisory Institution. Alongside this, he is also a frequent visiting professor at Harvard University. I had met him at Maharashtra College in Mumbai, where a seminar on Islamic banking and Ponzi schemes was taking place. At this meeting, I met with Dr Nisar as well as Mufti Ashfaq, who I would meet later.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to talk to him at the conference, but had the opportunity to talk to him over the phone. Like with Mufti Ashfaq, Dr Nisar was extremely forthcoming and was happy to answer all my questions in great detail.
As with all of the interviews, the most important question was “What is your view on the issue of Instant Talaq”. Similar to Mufti Ashfaq’s view, Dr Nisar believed that the current situation in India is a misuse of the Quran preaches and it is a misinterpretation of Sharia Law. He stated that the current use of Talaq is not the proper religious way of separation. He stated that the proper way to give Talaq is to do it in periods, which give time for the couple to reconsider and possibly reconcile. Dr Nisar believed that the misinterpretation of the law stemmed from a lack of knowledge and understanding about what the Quran teaches. Adding to this, he mentioned that Instant Talaq and the various misinterpretations occur more in lower-class societies, where education is not as readily available. This then becomes more of a humanitarian issue as women in lower classes do not have as many resources and when Talaq is given have little to no recourse. However, Dr Nisar did mention that women who have been given Talaq can go to a local court where a Mufti will assess the situation and provide the best way to move forward.
When asked about the bill, he believed that the bill was proposed for political reasons in an attempt to gain more votes from the minority groups, in this case, Muslim women. He also believed that the bill would not affect any real change as there is still no protection for women. Dr Nisar’s view was that if the man gets sent to prison, there is no longer a source of income which does not benefit the family.
In conclusion, Dr Nisar believed that Talaq is not wrong, but the current distortions in India are wrong as they don’t follow what the Quran is trying to teach.
