Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986

Justice Krishna Iyer has in this book made a scathing criticism of this controversial new Act, which he calls a 'black letter law', 'a freak birth'. He goes on to suggest a reform of the Muslim Personal Law and the adoption of a 'Uniform Civil Code for Indians' as a means of unifying the Nation against the divisive potential of religious fundamentalism and competitive communal pluralism.

The book is divided into six chapters as follows:

• Indian Muslims and Gender Justice
• Gender Injustice Legislation
• Common Civil Code
• The Shahbano Case : The Constitution and the Court
• Reform of the Muslim Personal Law
• A Uniform Civil Code for Indians

Justice Krishna Iyer has been in the forefront of the opponents to this Act, and some very interesting correspondence transpired between him and the Prime Minister and the Speaker of Lok Sabha during the passage of the Act through the Parliament. This has been reproduced in the appendices along with other useful materials.

• Popular Jurist :
The book provides a lot of useful informative material, a thought provoking treasure of ideas and gives a format for continuing the struggle to secure gender justice for all women of India, more particularly the Muslim women. The book is thoroughly documented with judicial pronouncements, religious texts and the considered thoughts of some known authors and speakers. The book provides a micro as well as a macro-dimensional overview of a very important social problem that squarely faces Indian society and demands solution. It contains valuable reading material not only for the lawyer but also for the legislator and the social worker, and above all for all the common men and women.
• Academy Law Review :
The author has not only pinpointed the various problems and issues concerning maintenance, but also has succeeded in putting them in the correct perspective. The book is highly informative and full of new insights. It is written in a lucid style; the arrangement is easy for the reader to follow. In this regard, the book will be of immense utility to those who wish to make an indepth study of the controversial issue and it is of great significance to lawmen, legislators and enlightened members of the society.

                   Indian Muslims and Gender Justice 1
                   Gender Injustic Legislation 11
                   Common Civil Code 24
                   The Shahbano Case, The Constitutional and the Court 36
                   Reform of the Muslim Personal Law 61
                   A Uniform Civil Code for Indians. A few fresh Reflections 81
                   Appendix A. An Open Letter to the Prime Minister 95
                   Appendix B. Letter to Prime Minister 101
                   Appendix C. Letter to Speaker Loksabha 102
                   Appendix D. The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights
                   on Divorce) Act, 1986 105
                   Appendix E. The Marriage Law of the Peoples' Republic of China 115
                   Appendix F. Fundamentals of Legislation of the USSR and
                   the Union Republics on Marriage and the Family 123