Lucknow, Aug 28 - With a view to curbing the rising incidence of 'talaq' (divorce), shariat (Islamic law) courts have been asked to act as marriage counsellors with a clear cut brief to prevent divorces as much as possible.

This guideline is being issued by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) for all shariat courts across the country.

'The whole idea behind the move is to prevent disruption and division of families,' said AIMPLB leader Maulana Khalid Rasheed, expressing concern over the growing tendency among couples to split over petty differences.

While a shariat court was always seen only as a forum for formalising a split between a husband and wife, it would now also play the role of a facilitator to keep a couple united.