India's apex Shia Muslim body wants ban on triple talaq, issues fatwa against cow slaughter

New Delhi: The All India Shia Personal Law Board (AISPLB) has joined forces demanding a ban on triple talaq and called for resolving the highly-vexed Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute through an out-of-court settlement.

The AISPLB, according to news agency ANI, adopted three resolutions on Wednesday including a fatwa against cow slaughter, a move to ban triple talaq and out-of-court settlement for the resolution of the Ayodhya dispute.

Ban on Cow slaughter appropriate: All India Shia Personal Law board in Lucknow. pic.twitter.com/jvzbzZjAOt — ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 5, 2017

Importantly, the AISPLB issued a fatwa banning the slaughter of cows in India during its executive committee meeting in Lucknow. The AISPLB decided to issue a fatwa after seeking a clarification from Ayatollah Sheikh Basheer Hussain Najafi, a top Shia cleric from Iraq. 

The board said that cow slaughter often triggered communal tension in the country. 

75-year old Hussain Najafi is one of the five Grand Ayatollahs in Iraq and is entitled to issue a fatwa for the community members.

The AISPLB fatwa against cow slaughter comes just a day after the Dewan of Ajmer Dargah and an influential Sunni Islamic spiritual leader came down heavily on the practice of triple talaq and called it “un-Islamic” and something which was against the Holy Quran. 

He also called for a legislation which would ban the slaughter of all the bovine species in India and announced a personal decision to have given up beef along with his family members.

However, this resolution concerning triple talaq was not unexpected as on March 15, Shia Personal Law Board member Maulana Yasoob Abbas had stated that triple talaq in one sitting was not acceptable.

The Shia personal law board also seems to have supported the Chief Justice of India’s stand by calling for an out-of-court settlement when most of the parties to the dispute had dismissed the offer stating that previous negotiations and mediations have not yielded any result.

On the suggestion for an out of court settlement for the Babri Masjid dispute Abbas said, ''Whenever there is a religious matter to be decided, its best to leave the political parties aside and take a call. Hence, this settlement should be without political interference and I am sure it will be successful as we understand each other’s concern."

Abbas had recently paid a courtesy visit to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath, to express their demands concerning the Shia community members living in India.