Talaq, talaq, talaq... oops!

PATNA: A divorce pronounced by a Muslim man in an inebriated condition has come to haunt him. He has been forced to live away from his wife and children by orthodox religious leaders.

Mohammed Mokhtar was forcibly separated from his wife Sakina Khatoon and their children in Parbodhi village, 35 km from here.

Forced to adhere to the interpretation of the Muslim law by a local religious group, Mokhtar was upset and frustrated for being separated. The man reportedly shouted "talaq" (divorce) thrice to his wife in a drunken state following a domestic quarrel a few days back.

"I honestly admit that even if I pronounced divorce to my wife, it was in a drunken condition. I hardly recall that I did it," Mokhtar said.

"I requested people to forgive me for my act. But some villagers forced us to live separately," he added. Sakina said she was willing to live with her husband but preferred to live separately due to the social pressure.

Maulana Inamul Haque, a religious leader in the village, said: "Alcohol is prohibited in Islam. If someone consumes it and then pronounces divorce, it will be accepted as divorce."

Mokhtar's case has been referred to the Imarat Sharia, a religious body at Phulwarisharief near Patna.  Those following orthodox religious dictates say that if Sakina wishes to reunite with him, she could undergo the practice of halala, that is, marry another man and obtain a divorce from him in order to eventually reunite with Mokhtar."I will commit suicide if this happened. I am against her marriage with somebody else before reuniting with me," Mokhtar said.