It is heartening to learn from an Islamic scholar (“Situating law in the land”, Oct.28) that the Koran allowed only conditional polygamy contrary to the widely held notion that it grants an unfettered licence to Muslim men. It is true that bigamy exists unofficially, though not very prevalent, in Hindu society. The writer’s suggestion that under the present circumstances, it would be better to impose conditions first rather than try to abolish polygamy among Muslims at one go is worth considering. But what he means when he talks about “constitutionality of laws that discourage women from making informed choices” is not clear. In a situation where there are two wives, what happens to the rights and well-being of the first wife? Is he prepared to accept polyandry if an “informed” woman chooses it?
B. Seetharami Reddy,Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh
It is preposterous for the writer to draw a parallel between Muslim polygyny and Hindu bigamy. Further, while extrapolating data on the number of married women being more than the number of married men among Hindus, he has overlooked that even widows call themselves married when posed the question whether they are married or not. The article is part of a desperate attempt to save an evil practice which is bound to vanish.
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The arguments justifying the practice of polygamy seem unacceptable in the present context. Whether it is Hindu bigamy or Muslim polygamy, the practice is unconstitutional and against the rights of women. Any argument of personal law, which jeopardises the situation and rights of any section of society should not be entertained in any form, either by the judiciary or the legislature.
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