When a marriage is dissolved by death or by divorce, the woman is prohibited from marrying within a specified time. It is a period of continence imposed on the woman. Iddah or Iddat is an Arabic term which means period of waiting and is observed by Muslim women. It is a period of chastity which a Muslim woman is bound to observe after the dissolution of her marriage due to the death of her husband or by divorce before she can lawfully marry again. The concept is very significant in Islamic Law.  It is one of the customary practices under the Quran which has been recognized through legislative enactment as well.

Commencement of Iddat:

The period begins from the date of actual divorce or death of the husband and not from the date on which the information reaches the wife.

Period of Iddat:

Case 1: Dissolution of Marriage by Divorce:

• If the marriage is dissolved by divorce and the consummation has taken place, the duration of the iddat period is three months. It is felt by the jurists that at least three menstrual cycles are essential to observe whether a woman is pregnant or not and as a menstrual cycle takes place once every month, the duration is three months. And if during this time she becomes pregnant the period owould extend till the delivery of her child.
• If a marriage is dissolved and consummation has not taken place, the divorced woman is not required to observe iddat as there is no chance of her being pregnant.
• If the divorced woman is pregnant at the time of divorce, her iddat period continues till the delivery of the child.  

Case 2: Dissolution of Marriage by the Death of the Husband:

• If a marriage is dissolved by the death of the husband, the widowed wife has to observe iddat for a duration of four months and ten days. In this case, it does not matter whether consummation took place or not. 
• If the woman in this period becomes pregnant, then her iddat period extends till the delivery of her child.

Case 3: Death of husband during iddat (due to divorce)

• In the case where a woman is divorced by her husband and is observing divorce, an iddat of three months will be observed. If during this time her husband dies, she has to observe a fresh iddat of four months and ten days from the day of the death of the husband.

Statutory Provisions:

Under section-2(b) of The Muslim Women Act, 1986, “iddat” is mandatory under which divorced/widowed wives have to observe certain restrictions. Section 2(b) of the Act prescribes iddat period to be followed in three different scenarios;

• If the divorced woman is subject to menstruation, then she is required to abstain from remarriage for three menstrual cycles starting from the date at which dissolution of marriage took place.
• In case if the divorced woman is not going through the menstruation period, then she is supposed to observe iddat for three lunar months. And,
• If she is pregnant during the dissolution of marriage, the period of iddat extends till the time she delivers the child or till the termination of pregnancy whichever comes earlier.

Objects of Iddat:

• For the purpose of ascertaining pregnancy or a child’s parentage: Iddat period is practiced amongst Muslims to ascertain the pregnancy of a divorced/widowed woman or child’s parentage at the time of dissolution of marriage of his/her parents.
• Opportunity for reconciliation: Iddat is accepted as a period for reconciliation of potential differences amongst husband and wife. 
• Period of mourning for the deceased husband: it gives ample time to the widowed wife to mourn over the death of her husband, and by this way, she can protect herself from taking haste decision in the time of vulnerability. 

Importance of Iddat:

Under Muslim law, a husband is obliged to maintain his wife only till the iddat period if the dissolution of marriage takes place, and, in the case of a widowed wife, the responsibility of maintenance of widow lies on her heirs who will inherit her property.

In Shah Bano v.U.O.I., AIR 1985 SC 945 case, the Apex Court substantially deviated from the principle of Mohammedan law by adjudicating that divorced wife has right to claim for maintenance even after completion of iddat period under Section 125 (CrPC). This decision diluted the importance of the iddat period for maintenance rights. 

Implications of Iddat:

1. The husband is bound to maintain the wife during the period of iddat.
2. The wife cannot marry another person until completion of her iddat, and if the husband has four wives including the divorced one, he cannot marry a fifth wife until the completion of the divorced wife’s iddat.
3. The wife in entitled to deferred dower, and if the prompt dower has not been paid, it becomes immediately payable.
4. In the event of death of either party before the expiration of the iddat period, the other is entitled to inherit from him or her in the capacity of wife or husband, as the case may be, if the divorce has not become irrevocable before the death of the deceased.
5. If the divorce is pronounced in death-illness, and the husband dies before the completion of wife’s iddat, the wife is entitled to inherit from him, even if the divorce has become irrevocable prior to his death, unless the divorce has been affected without her consent.

Conclusion:

iddat is a period of chastity which a Muslim woman is bound to observe after the dissolution of her marriage due to the death of her husband or by divorce before she can lawfully marry again. It can be observed that this practice might hold significant value in earlier times because there is a lack of scientific advancement to determine the pregnancy of a woman in the early phase or parentage of a child in case of remarriage. But, with the advancement of science, such things can easily be determined without forcing them to accept subjugation in the name of the religious norm. 

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