Victim of triple talaq seeks UP minister's help

A dowry-seeking man who tortured his wife and divorced her by uttering the word talaq three times was being investigated by the police after she asked a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government for help.
Saleem, a carpenter, divorced Umeeda on Saturday because his in-laws could not afford to buy him a house, Umeeda's father told Bharatiya Janata Party MLA and food and civil supplies minister Atul Garg.
A day after the triple talaq, her father, Sabir, also a carpenter, took Umeeda to Garg's residence, seeking his intervention in the matter.
According to Sabir, Saleem and Umeeda were married four years ago. Soon after that, Saleem started harassing Umeeda, demanding that she ask her father for money for a house.

The father told Garg that Saleem would beat Umeeda because her family could not meet his dowry demands.
Sabir said though his earnings were meagre, he often financially helped his son-in-law.

Saleem, the family said, soon started torturing Umeeda. On May 6, after a fight with his wife, he divorced her by uttering the word talaq thrice.
He turned her out of their house, and warned her that she would face trouble if she went to the police.
Umeeda reached her parents' home with her two-year-old son. The next day, Sabir took her to Garg.
Garg told PTI the government could not help Umeeda because triple talaq was valid under the Sharia.

If the victim moved court, security would be provided to her and her family members, he said.
An FIR has been registered in the G.T. Road Kotwali (police station) under section 498-A of the IPC, under which a person convicted of spousal cruelty can be sent to jail for three years.
The police are looking into the case, SP (City) Aakash Tomar said.
The practice of triple talaq is being opposed by thousands of Muslim women across the country. On May 11, the issue will come up before the Supreme Court.