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Is it possible for a poor uneducated Muslim woman to enter into a land deal in a mosque?
This was the Bombay high court's observation while hearing an appeal filed by Mumtajibi, 51, a resident of Nagpur, against a lower court's order which said that she must execute the 1986 agreement to sell her house to one Rahimtullah.
A devout, illiterate Muslim widow would have never gone to the mosque, that too for discussing a deal, the Nagpur bench of the high court held last week.
Mumtajibi's contention was that she never entered into an agreement with Rahimtullah, who had been, incidentally, convicted for the murder of her husband.
Therefore, it was impossible that she had any dealing with him, the petition said. The trial court believed her story, but the district court reversed the verdict, so she filed an appeal in the high court.
In his ruling, Justice A P Bhangale of the high court said, "The version of the plaintiff (Rahimtullah) that he held talks with the lady in the Masjid where nearly 100-150 persons were present is highly improbable".
"A Muslim lady observing Muslim religious practices would not visit a mosque and that too for knowingly executing an Isarpatra (agreement to sell) pre-drafted in English," he added.
Deciding the appeal in Mumtajibi's favour, the court held, "Under the circumstances, a poor uneducated Muslim woman observing religious practices such as the purdah cannot be easily imputed with knowledge of an agreement to sell, which was drafted in English."