The daughter of Shah Bano Begum — the woman whose landmark legal battle led to a historic 1985 Supreme Court judgment on maintenance rights for divorced Muslim women — has approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court, seeking a stay on the release of the Hindi film Haq. The film is scheduled to hit theatres on November 7.
The petition, filed by Siddiqua Begum Khan in the Indore bench of the High Court, contends that Haq misrepresents events from her late mother’s personal life and was made without the consent of her family. The film, directed by Suparn S Varma and starring Emraan Hashmi and Yami Gautam Dhar, is reportedly inspired by the Shah Bano case.
Khan’s counsel, advocate Tousif Warsi, told PTI that the petition was listed for the first time on Monday. Both parties appeared before the court, and after a brief hearing, the bench fixed the next date for Tuesday (November 4).
Shah Bano, a resident of Indore, had filed a case in a local court in 1978 seeking maintenance from her husband, Mohammad Ahmed Khan, a lawyer, after he divorced her. Her legal struggle culminated in the 1985 Supreme Court ruling that Muslim women were entitled to maintenance under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code, like women of other faiths.
The verdict — delivered by a five-judge Constitution Bench — became a watershed moment in Indian legal history, affirming equal maintenance rights. However, it also triggered strong protests from several Muslim organisations. In response, the Rajiv Gandhi-led government passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, effectively overturning the apex court’s judgment.
Shah Bano passed away in 1992, but her case remains one of the most cited and debated decisions in Indian family law and women’s rights jurisprudence.
Haq is said to be “inspired” by the Shah Bano case, though the petitioner contends that it wrongly dramatizes her mother’s life and events. The film’s release, set for Friday, could now depend on the outcome of the pending petition before the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
