December 15, 2017

The government’s seeking of a ban against “triple talaq” because it is derogatory and discriminatory against women.

On Friday, the govt. approved the draft law under which the practice of giving instant triple talaq would be made illegal & void, and would attract a jail term of 3 years for the husband, a govt. functionary said.

The draft of ‘Muslim Women Protection of Rights on Marriage Bill’ was considered by the Union Cabinet which gave its nod.

This draft was prepared by an inter-ministerial group headed by the Home Minister Rajnath Singh; the other members included Finance Minister Arun Jaitley; External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj; Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad & his junior in the ministry P. P. Chaudhary.

This proposed law would only be applicable on instant triple talaq i.e. ‘talaq-e-biddat’ & would give power to the victim to approach a magistrate seeking “subsistence allowance” for herself & her minor children.

The govt. hopes to get parliament clearance for the bill during the short winter session that began today.

Many Muslim countries have already banned “triple talaq”, including Pakistan & even conservative Saudi Arabia. However, it survived in India as religious communities are allowed to apply their own laws in personal matters such as marriage, divorce & property inheritance.