طلاق وخلع کے مسائل: تفسیر ضیاءالقرآن اور تسہیل البیان کی روشنی میں سورۃالبقرۃ کا اختصاصی مطالعہ

Issues of Divorce and Khula: A Juristic Study of Surah Al-Baqarah in the Light of Tafseer Zia-ul-Qur’an and Tasheel-ul-Bayan

Abstract

The Islamic Shariah considers the family system as the basic component of the human society and bases its decisions of marriage, divorce and khula on the concepts of balance, wisdom and justice. Surah Al-Baqarah verses which deal with divorce and khula are the pillars of the Islamic family law. These verses exhaustively detail the divorce process, number of pronouncements, waiting period (iddah) right of revocation (ruju) and rights and duties of spouses. Simultaneously, khula is shown as an outstanding but valid solution to guarantee against coercion, harm, and emotional distress of the marriage life.

The distinguished council of exegetes of Indian subcontinent, Pir Karam Shah Al- Azhari and Maulana Aslam Sheikhupuri occupies a very important place among those who have attempted to present the interpretation of the Quran with juristic perception, moderation and sensitivity to the needs of our times. Pir Karam Shah Al-Azhari, in his Tafseer Zia-ul-Qur, explicates the Quranic text mainly in the context of the Hanafi jurisprudence though pointing out the goals of Shariah and the rationale of the legislation. On the contrary, the Maulana Aslam Sheikhupuri in Tasheel-ul-Bayan clears up the juristic questions in a simple, clear and unambiguous way that they can be easily understood by more readers.

This paper gives a juristic comparison of the divorce and khula ruling of Surah Al-Baqarah as understood by the two exegetes. It looks into their juristic orientations, the methodological principles and the practical implications so as to establish some areas of commonalities and differences in their interpretations. The study also shows how these distinctions manifest an acceptable juristic diversity and highlights the flexibility and scope of the Islamic law.