The Supreme Court on Friday refused to hear a batch of petitions challenging the validity of the ordinance promulgated by the government outlawing instant triple talaq, PTI reported. The court said it does not want to interfere with the ordinance.

In September, the Union Cabinet approved the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights in Marriage) Ordinance, 2018, after failing to get Parliament to pass legislation on the matter. The ordinance criminalises the practice of Muslim men divorcing their wives by uttering the word “talaq” three times in any form – spoken, written, or via electronic communication. It also has a provision for a three-year jail term for men who violate the law.

Considering the pleas on Friday, the court observed that the Winter Session of Parliament is coming up soon and ordinances lapse if Parliament fails to pass it as legislation within six weeks of reassembly.

The petitioners withdrew the pleas after the bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justices KM Joseph and Hemant Gupta refused to hear them.

The petitioners said the ordinance was a fraud on the Constitution, and that it was “arbitrary and discriminatory”. They said Article 123 of the Constitution allows ordinances only in situations that need immediate action. Another claimed the ordinance would lead to “polarisation and disharmony in society”.