The Muslim Women(Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 seeks to replace an Ordinanceintroduced in February this year for the second time since September last year.The triple talaq bill seeks to make instant triple talaq a criminal offencepunishable with three years in jail. The bill is aimed at Muslim men whodivorce their wives by pronouncing "talaq" three times in one go.
In August 2017, the SupremeCourt declared instant triple talaq unconstitutional thereby ruling thatpronouncement of "talaq" three times by a Muslim man to his wife doesnot end their marriage.
The previous Narendra Modigovernment followed it up with a bill that was introduced and passed in the LokSabha in December 2017. But the bill could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha.And, with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha last month, the triple talaqbill lapsed requiring tabling in the lower house afresh.
However, the opposition hascreated ruckus over the introduction of Triple Talaq Bill in the Parliament.Opposing the Bill, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the proposed triple talaqlaw is a "textbook example of class legislation" as it discriminatesagainst Muslims. Tharoor said he is advocating instant triple talaq butopposing making a "void act" a criminal offence punishable with ajail term.
He said abandoning of women by husbands is not unique to Muslimcommunity, it is equally prevalent among other communities and so why not makea universal law to provide total protection to all women.
Tharoor also said thetriple talaq bill does not provide for anything improving the lot of Muslimwomen. It only punishes the Muslim men for an act that has been declared voidby the Supreme Court.
Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi also opposed the Bill saying that it violatesArticles 14 and 15 of the Constitution. He said the Supreme Court has declaredinstant triple talaq void meaning the marriage does not end by suchpronouncements.
Owaisi said that the triple talaq bill introduced by the law minister puts theburden of proof on women while her husband would be in jail for three years forpronouncing instant triple talaq.
The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 was introducedto replace an Ordinance issued in February by the previous BJP-led NDAgovernment. The Bill was introduced in December 2017 but owing to dissolutionof the 16th Lok Sabha last month, the previous bill had lapsed as it waspending in the Rajya Sabha.
The Bill proposes to make the practice of instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat)a penal offence. The government had promulgated the Ordinance on triple talaqtwice -- in September 2018 and in January 2019 -- as the contentious billremained pending in the Rajya Sabha, though it was passed by the Lok Sabha.
Rejecting the opposition byTharoor and Owaisi, Prasad said the parliamentarians should not become thejudge and let Parliament legislate and the courts debate the legality of a law.He said the Modi government was voted to power in the Lok Sabha for bringingsuch laws and ensuring justice to women.
The Muslim Women(Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 seeks to replace an Ordinanceintroduced in February this year for the second time since September last year.The triple talaq bill seeks to make instant triple talaq a criminal offencepunishable with three years in jail. The bill is aimed at Muslim men whodivorce their wives by pronouncing "talaq" three times in one go.
In August 2017, the SupremeCourt declared instant triple talaq unconstitutional thereby ruling thatpronouncement of "talaq" three times by a Muslim man to his wife doesnot end their marriage.
The previous Narendra Modigovernment followed it up with a bill that was introduced and passed in the LokSabha in December 2017. But the bill could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha.And, with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha last month, the triple talaqbill lapsed requiring tabling in the lower house afresh.
However, the opposition hascreated ruckus over the introduction of Triple Talaq Bill in the Parliament.Opposing the Bill, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the proposed triple talaqlaw is a "textbook example of class legislation" as it discriminatesagainst Muslims. Tharoor said he is advocating instant triple talaq butopposing making a "void act" a criminal offence punishable with ajail term.
He said abandoning of women by husbands is not unique to Muslimcommunity, it is equally prevalent among other communities and so why not makea universal law to provide total protection to all women.
Tharoor also said thetriple talaq bill does not provide for anything improving the lot of Muslimwomen. It only punishes the Muslim men for an act that has been declared voidby the Supreme Court.
Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi also opposed the Bill saying that it violatesArticles 14 and 15 of the Constitution. He said the Supreme Court has declaredinstant triple talaq void meaning the marriage does not end by suchpronouncements.
Owaisi said that the triple talaq bill introduced by the law minister puts theburden of proof on women while her husband would be in jail for three years forpronouncing instant triple talaq.
The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 was introducedto replace an Ordinance issued in February by the previous BJP-led NDAgovernment. The Bill was introduced in December 2017 but owing to dissolutionof the 16th Lok Sabha last month, the previous bill had lapsed as it waspending in the Rajya Sabha.
The Bill proposes to make the practice of instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat)a penal offence. The government had promulgated the Ordinance on triple talaqtwice -- in September 2018 and in January 2019 -- as the contentious billremained pending in the Rajya Sabha, though it was passed by the Lok Sabha.
Rejecting the opposition byTharoor and Owaisi, Prasad said the parliamentarians should not become thejudge and let Parliament legislate and the courts debate the legality of a law.He said the Modi government was voted to power in the Lok Sabha for bringingsuch laws and ensuring justice to women.