Imrana rape case
Encyclopedia
The Imrana rape
case is the case of the sexual assault
of a 28 year-old India
n Muslim
woman by her father-in-law
on 6 June 2005 in Charthawal village in the Muzaffarnagar district
Uttar Pradesh
, India
(located located 70 km from Delhi
). The village elders and subsequently, several levels of Islamic legal opinion regarded Imrana's marriage with her husband null, as the Sharia regards sexual relations with both the father and son as incestuous. This sparked nation-wide controversy as critics argued the case was treated as adultery and not rape.
Soon after she was raped, a local Muslim panchayat (council of elders) asked her to treat her husband Nur Ilahi as her son and declared their marriage null and void. Imrana defied the panchayat's ruling and continued living with her husband.
The leading Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband
also issued a fatwa
or opinion, which quotes from Quran 4:22: wa la tankihoo ma nakaha aaba-o-kum, “And
marry not women whom your fathers married”, and not distinguishing between rape and adultery, said that as a result of her father-in-law's act, she should now be treated
as the mother of her husband and she could no longer live with him even though Imrana had not married her father in law. She was still married to her husband when she was raped by her father in law therefore the fatwa provided by the panchayat's disregard the Islamic rulings against rape and the punishment for the rapists. Due to such fatwa Imrana is in a way being prosecuted instead of her rapist father in law as she is being ordered to leave her husband and start a life with her rapist. The fatwa is a clarification of the ruling by the village leaders who disregarded the Islamic teachings for such cases for the sake of shunning Imrana who is thought to have brought shame to the community by having sexual intercourse with her father in law.
This fatwa was based on the Abu Hanifa school of Islamic Jurisprudence (Hanafi
fiqh), which rules that on having sex with a man she marries, a woman has the status of mother to all his children. The other three schools, Maliki
, Shafi'i
, and Hanbali
, reject this position The All India Muslim Personal Law Board
also endorsed the fatwa, but opinions were divided between the Hanafi
and Shafi'i
, the two sunni fiqh
's mostly represented in India.
Later, the Deoband seminary denied that it has issued such a fatwa. Nur Ilahi continued to stay with Imrana and said that "[they] neither sought advice nor counsel from Deoband. [They] have not raised the issue before clerics."
At one point, Uttar Pradesh
chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav
also endorsed the view of the Darul Uloom
that she can no longer live with her husband.
After Imrana's case was highlighted by the national media, the National Commission for Women
directed authorities in Muzaffarnagar to take action. The body's chairperson Girija Vyas
asked the Uttar Pradesh government to punish the guilty and sought a report on the incident.
against Mohammed Ali and arrested him. Police also filed a case against him on 30 June 2005 with a medical report and recorded Imrana's statement before a magistrate. The court had turned down Mohammed Ali's bail plea on 5 December 2005.
In a video recorded by the Muslim Political Council of India, Imrana (veiled) says that once she screamed, Mohammed Ali had run away. On being asked again, she reiterates that the forceful attempt was not successful.
However, the court took a different view based on evidence presented in the trial.
On October 2006, Mohammed Ali was condemned to a prison term of ten years for raping Imrana.
At one point the defense lawyer sought a leniency based on age of the defendant, but this was denied.
The judge also directed Mohammed Ali to pay compensation of Rs
8,000 to Imrana for raping her. On the separate charge of criminal intimidation, Mohammed ali was sentenced to three years in prison and fined in Rs 3,000.
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
case is the case of the sexual assault
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
of a 28 year-old India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
woman by her father-in-law
Father-in-law
A parent-in-law is a person who has a legal affinity with another by being the parent of the other's spouse. Many cultures and legal systems impose duties and responsibilities on persons connected by this relationship...
on 6 June 2005 in Charthawal village in the Muzaffarnagar district
Muzaffarnagar District
Muzaffarnagar district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. It is part of Saharanpur division. The town of Muzaffarnagar is the district headquarters.-Communication:...
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(located located 70 km from Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
). The village elders and subsequently, several levels of Islamic legal opinion regarded Imrana's marriage with her husband null, as the Sharia regards sexual relations with both the father and son as incestuous. This sparked nation-wide controversy as critics argued the case was treated as adultery and not rape.
Rape and Islamic rulings
On 6 June 2005, Imrana, 28 years old at the time, and the mother of five children, was raped by her 69 year-old father in-law Ali Mohammad.Soon after she was raped, a local Muslim panchayat (council of elders) asked her to treat her husband Nur Ilahi as her son and declared their marriage null and void. Imrana defied the panchayat's ruling and continued living with her husband.
The leading Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband
Darul Uloom Deoband
The Darul Uloom Deoband is an Islamic school in India where the Deobandi Islamic movement was started. It is located at Deoband, a town in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It was founded in 1866 by several prominent Islamic scholars , headed by Maulana Muhammad Qasim Nanotvi...
also issued a fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
or opinion, which quotes from Quran 4:22: wa la tankihoo ma nakaha aaba-o-kum, “And
marry not women whom your fathers married”, and not distinguishing between rape and adultery, said that as a result of her father-in-law's act, she should now be treated
as the mother of her husband and she could no longer live with him even though Imrana had not married her father in law. She was still married to her husband when she was raped by her father in law therefore the fatwa provided by the panchayat's disregard the Islamic rulings against rape and the punishment for the rapists. Due to such fatwa Imrana is in a way being prosecuted instead of her rapist father in law as she is being ordered to leave her husband and start a life with her rapist. The fatwa is a clarification of the ruling by the village leaders who disregarded the Islamic teachings for such cases for the sake of shunning Imrana who is thought to have brought shame to the community by having sexual intercourse with her father in law.
This fatwa was based on the Abu Hanifa school of Islamic Jurisprudence (Hanafi
Hanafi
The Hanafi school is one of the four Madhhab in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. The Hanafi madhhab is named after the Persian scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit , a Tabi‘i whose legal views were preserved primarily by his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani...
fiqh), which rules that on having sex with a man she marries, a woman has the status of mother to all his children. The other three schools, Maliki
Maliki
The ' madhhab is one of the schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam. It is the second-largest of the four schools, followed by approximately 25% of Muslims, mostly in North Africa, West Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and in some parts of Saudi Arabia...
, Shafi'i
Shafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
, and Hanbali
Hanbali
The Hanbali school is one the schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam. The jurisprudence school traces back to Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal but was institutionalized by his students. Hanbali jurisprudence is considered very strict and conservative, especially regarding questions of dogma...
, reject this position The All India Muslim Personal Law Board
All India Muslim Personal Law Board
The All India Muslim Personal Law Board is an organization constituted in 1973 to adopt suitable strategies for the protection and continued applicability of Muslim Personal Law in India, most importantly, the The Muslim Personal Law Application Act of 1937, providing for the application of the...
also endorsed the fatwa, but opinions were divided between the Hanafi
Hanafi
The Hanafi school is one of the four Madhhab in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. The Hanafi madhhab is named after the Persian scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit , a Tabi‘i whose legal views were preserved primarily by his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani...
and Shafi'i
Shafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
, the two sunni fiqh
Fiqh
Fiqh is Islamic jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the code of conduct expounded in the Quran, often supplemented by tradition and implemented by the rulings and interpretations of Islamic jurists....
's mostly represented in India.
Later, the Deoband seminary denied that it has issued such a fatwa. Nur Ilahi continued to stay with Imrana and said that "[they] neither sought advice nor counsel from Deoband. [They] have not raised the issue before clerics."
At one point, Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav
Mulayam Singh Yadav
Mulayam Singh Yadav in Hindi मुलायम सिंह यादव is an Indian politician and has influence mainly in Uttar Pradesh state of India...
also endorsed the view of the Darul Uloom
Darul uloom
Darul uloom , also spelled darul ulum etc., is an Arabic term which literally means "house of knowledge". The term generally means an Islamic seminary or educational institution—similar to or often the same as a madrassa or Islamic school—although a Darul Uloom often indicates a more advanced level...
that she can no longer live with her husband.
After Imrana's case was highlighted by the national media, the National Commission for Women
National Commission for Women
The National Commission for Women is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act.. The present head of the Commission is Mrs...
directed authorities in Muzaffarnagar to take action. The body's chairperson Girija Vyas
Girija Vyas
She has written eight books, three of which contain her poetry. Ehsaas Ke Par has her Urdu poems, Seep, Samundar Aur Moti has both her Hindi and Urdu poems while Nostalgia is enriched with English verses.- Positions held :* M.L.A., Rajasthan...
asked the Uttar Pradesh government to punish the guilty and sought a report on the incident.
Arrest of father-in-law
Police registered a case under sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal CodeIndian Penal Code
Indian Penal Code is the main criminal code of India. It is a comprehensive code, intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law. It was drafted in 1860 and came into force in colonial India during the British Raj in 1862...
against Mohammed Ali and arrested him. Police also filed a case against him on 30 June 2005 with a medical report and recorded Imrana's statement before a magistrate. The court had turned down Mohammed Ali's bail plea on 5 December 2005.
In a video recorded by the Muslim Political Council of India, Imrana (veiled) says that once she screamed, Mohammed Ali had run away. On being asked again, she reiterates that the forceful attempt was not successful.
However, the court took a different view based on evidence presented in the trial.
On October 2006, Mohammed Ali was condemned to a prison term of ten years for raping Imrana.
At one point the defense lawyer sought a leniency based on age of the defendant, but this was denied.
The judge also directed Mohammed Ali to pay compensation of Rs
Rupee
The rupee is the common name for the monetary unit of account in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives, and formerly in Burma, and Afghanistan. Historically, the first currency called "rupee" was introduced in the 16th century...
8,000 to Imrana for raping her. On the separate charge of criminal intimidation, Mohammed ali was sentenced to three years in prison and fined in Rs 3,000.
Timeline
Chronology of events in the Imrana rape case:- 6 June 2005: Ali Mohammed raped his daughter-in-law Imrana.
- 13 June 2005: A local Muslim panchayat declared Imrana's marriage to Nur Ilahi void as she "had sex" with her father-in-law and asks her to treat her husband as her son, which means she would have to stop living with him.
- 13 June 2005: Mohammed is arrested.
- 16 June 2005: Mohammed is sent to judicial custody.
- 30 June 2005: The police filed cases against Mohammed along with a medical report. Imrana's statement is recorded before a magistrate.
- 5 December 2005: The court turned down Mohammed's bailBailTraditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
plea.
- 30 December 2005: The charges are framed against Mohammed.
- 19 October 2006: The court sentenced Mohammed to 10 years in prison for raping Imrana. He also received a three-year term for a separate charge of criminal intimidation.