Cabinet’s nod to triple talaq decree
Claiming that incidents of “talaqebiddat”, or instant triple talaq, have continued unabated despite the Supreme Court having struck it down, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday promulgated an ordinance to ban the practice, with law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad saying there was a “compelling necessity” to do so. The step was taken after the government failed to pass the Muslim Women ( Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017, in the Rajya Sabha during the recent monsoon session.
Under the proposed Ordinance, giving instant triple talaq will be illegal and void and will attract a jail term of three years for the husband. Seeking to allay fears that the proposed law could be misused, the government has included certain safeguards in it such as adding a provision of bail for the accused before trial. These amendments were cleared by the Union Cabinet on August 29.
Activist say that triple talaq is not women empowerment as claimed, but more a political one. Why does triple talaq have to be penalised when the Supreme Court has already said that a marriage will not stand dissolved if divorce is given by invoking triple talaq. Flavia Agnes, a women’s right lawyers said, “This is a bad decision. They could not pass it in Parliament, now they have brought an executive order. The Supreme Court has already said it is invalid. So if something is invalid already, how can it be a crime?” Women will inevitably suffer more add activist.
DUAL STAND
Activist say, if the government was interested in the welfare of Muslim women, then why was Prime Minister Modi silent on the issue of female genital mutilation ( FGM), which is a practice that has still not been banned within the Bohra community. The Congress in addition said that the government has not acceded to the party’s plea to make a provision for attaching
IN AUGUST LAST YEAR, A FIVEJUDGE BENCH OF THE SUPREME COURT RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL A LAW THAT ALLOWED MUSLIM MEN TO DIVORCE THEIR WIVES SIMPLY BY UTTERING “TALAQ” THREE TIMES IN QUICK SUCCESSION. IN A LANDMARK 3- 2 VERDICT, THE APEX COURT FOUND THE PRACTICE UN- ISLAMIC AND “ARBITRARY”, AND DISAGREED THAT TRIPLE TALAQ WAS AN INTEGRAL PART OF RELIGIOUS PRACTICE.
property of those not providing compensation to the affected women and children after divorce.
WHAT IS INSTANT TRIPLE TALAQ?
Instant triple talaq or talaq- e- biddat is a practice that was challenged in the court. It is different from the practice of “talaq- ul- sunnat”, which is considered to be the ideal form of dissolution of marriage among Muslims.
Talaq- ul- sunnat: Once the husband pronounces talaq, the wife has to observe a three- month iddat covering three menstrual cycles during which the husband can arbitrate and re- conciliate with the wife. In case of cohabitation between the couple, during these three months, the talaq is revoked. However, when the period of iddat expires and the husband does not revoke the talaq either expressly or by consummation, the talaq is irrevocable and final.
Talaq- e- biddat: When a man pronounces talaq thrice in a sitting, or through phone, or writes in a talaqnama or a text message, the divorce is considered immediate and irrevocable, even if the man later wishes to reconciliate.