New Delhi [India], April 29 : The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a plea seeking a declaration that persons who do not want to be governed by Muslim Personal Law must be allowed to be governed by the secular law of the country.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, after elaborate discussions, issued notice to the Centre and the State of Kerala on the petition.
The bench asked the Attorney General for India, R Venkantramani, to nominate a law officer who can assist the court and posted the matter for hearing in the second week of July 2024.
The petition was filed by a Kerala-based woman named Safiya PM, who stated that she is a non-believer Muslim and hence should be governed by the Indian Succession Act 1925 with respect to inheritance instead of the Muslim Personal Law (Sharia Law).
She said that her father is a non-practicing Muslim but has not officially left the religion.
"As per Sharia law, the person who leaves her faith in Islam, will be ousted from her community and thereafter she is not entitled for any inheritance right in her parental property," the petition said.
The petition said that, as per Sharia law, a Muslim person cannot bequeath more than 1/3rd of his properties by way of will.
The plea added that her father cannot bequeath more than 1/3 of the property to her and the remaining 2/3 will go to her brother, who was suffering from Down's syndrome.
It was further stated that the petitioner had a daughter and after the petitioner's death, the entire property will not go to her daughter as her father's brothers will also get a claim.
"The absence of any provision for having the inheritance rights, even after leaving the religion, puts the citizen in a dangerous situation as neither the secular laws of the State nor the religious laws would protect her. As per Sharia law, one who has left Islam will lose her inheritance rights. It is the prayer of the petitioner that she should be governed by the provisions of the Indian Succession Act, 1925," the petition stated.
It further said that petitioner strongly believes that the practices under Sharia law are highly discriminatory towards Muslim women and hence it violates the fundamental Rights guaranteed under the Indian Constitution.