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HomeIndiaGovernanceMPs raise objections to triple talaq Bill, Speaker says vote today itself

MPs raise objections to triple talaq Bill, Speaker says vote today itself

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AIMIM’s Owaisi and IUML’s Basheer among leaders who warn that passing the bill could have severe repercussions for Muslim women.

New Delhi: The triple talaq bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha Thursday, with many MPs voicing their objections to its clauses.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017, as it is called, has been surrounded by controversy and comes on the back of several rounds of debate on instant triple talaq, or talaq-e-biddat. In a landmark ruling in August, the Supreme Court had declared instant triple talaq illegal.

Union Law Minister Ravishankar Prasad said the introduction of the bill made the day historic. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari, meanwhile, reportedly said that the Congress supports the Supreme Court’s ruling.

Asaduddin Owaisi, head of the All India Majlis-e-Ittihadul Muslimeen, said the bill violates fundamental rights and lacks basic legal coherence. He pointed out various inconsistencies in the bill, stating that even if a person is sent to prison, conjugal rights remain. He also said that Muslims were not consulted during the drafting of the bill. “This bill, if passed, will lead to abandoned Muslim women,” he said.

E.T. Mohammad Basheer, leader of the Indian Union Muslim League, said “this bill is unwanted, this bill is politically motivated”, adding that the bill violated Article 25 of the Constitution. It also contradicts the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights) on Divorce Act, 1986, he said.

Biju Janata Dal MP Bhartruhari Mahtab raised several points, asking if a law can criminalise an act after conceding that it does not result in a crime.

“The anxiety to bring in a bill is actually doing a disservice to the womenfolk of the Muslim community. We are for the empowerment of women,” he stated.

“With all respect to the legal profession, this bill will only harvest more number of cases in the court. It needs reconsideration, that is my contention,” he added.

The law minister told the House that there have been 100 cases of instant triple talaq in the country since the Supreme Court judgment terming the practice as unconstitutional. He also appealed to opposition parties not to see the bill through the lens of politics, religion or vote bank.

“The issue was not of religion, faith or puja; the issue is of gender justice, gender quality and gender dignity”, he said.

Mallikarjun Kharge of the Congress suggested that an elaborate consultation is needed to fix the lacunas in the bill.

Congress MP Sushmita Dev raised the issue of maintenance for women undergoing divorce process. She said the bill criminalises triple talaq but “if the husband goes to jail, who will give the maintenance? Will the government create a corpus to provide maintenance to divorced women waiting for compensation,” she asked.

BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi said there is a need to stop the practice of triple talaq to prevent its misuse and the bill aims to do that. “Codify Muslim Law so there is no confusion on what is right or wrong,” she said.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan wound up the debate saying that time was limited, but added that the bill would be put to vote Thursday itself. The merits of the bill were not discussed.

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