Bill to ban instant talaq passed by the Lok Sabha

Bill to ban instant talaq passed by the Lok Sabha

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Jul 25, 2019 : The contentious bill that would criminalise instant triple talaq was passed by the Lok Sabha today after a day-long heated battle that also witnessed a walkout by BJP ally Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United. The JDU, which had earlier said it was against the bill, today said such a law would create a "lack of trust in the society". Two other opposition parties - the Congress and the Trinamool Congress - walked out after the vote, NDTV reported.

 

The bill now faces the Rajya Sabha test. Most of the fence-sitters who sided with the government today in the Rajya Sabha over amendments to the landmark Right to Information Act, have said they oppose the bill on Triple Talaq.

The new law provides for a jail term for Muslim men who can get an instant divorce by uttering "Talaq" thrice, which the opposition maintained was unacceptable. 

Introducing the bill, Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said it was about gender justice. "Twenty Muslim countries in the world, including Pakistan and Malaysia, have banned the triple talaq. Why can’t a secular India do it?" he said.

The opposition parties say the bill should be referred to a select parliamentary committee for discussion and debate and have repeatedly questioned the government’s motive in rushing it.

"Criminality clause may be misused by police and government," K Suresh, the Chief Whip of Congress in Lok Sabha told news agency ANI. He also alleged that the government had kept the bill’s introduction "a secret".