Seeking Talfīq as a Strategy for the Amendmends in the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act of Sri Lanka a Juristic Analysis

The demand for amendments in the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act has been a controversial issue in in Sri Lanka. Even though the ShÄ fiÊ¿Ä« madhhab is predominant in Sri Lanka, the activists propose to use the talfÄ«q (combination of madhhabs) to accommodate their demands based on the ḤanafÄ« madhhab as a strategy for the amendments in the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act. Accordingly, they demand the appointment of women QÄ á¸ Ä«, and the nullification of walÄ« considering the opinions of ḤanafÄ« madhhab. Therefore, the demand for talfÄ«q has become a controversial issue which urge an academic analysis on it. Hence, this study explores the possibilities of deploying the talfÄ«q for reform in the juristic perspective drawing on the Quran, Hadith, and the opinions of the classical and modern jurists. As a result, this study found that the talfÄ«q strategy is not encouraged by the classical jurists as well as the predominant religious leaders in Sri Lanka also oppose it vehemently. However, this study recommends the comparative analysis of the madhhab to find the best practice of the madhhabs on a particular subject.