Centre tweaks Talaq Bill to ensure passage in RS

The Centre has watered down the proposed law which makes the practice of instant triple talaq illegal; the Bill has been diluted so that it is acceptable to the Congress and other Opposition parties, which have the numbers in the Rajya Sabha.

In the tweaked version, the complaint can be filed only by the woman or her family. This would allay fears that even a neighbour can file an FIR, as is the cases in any cognisable offence. This would check misuse.

Another amendment makes the offence of triple talaq "compoundable". Now, a magistrate can use his powers to settle the dispute between a husband and his wife. Under a compoundable offence, both parties have the liberty of withdrawing the case.

The woman can also drop charges if her husband is open to a compromise. "I believe deterrence is very important in law. Once the husband goes to jail, he will straighten out and compromises will happen," Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

The possibility of bail has been brought in and the accused can approach a magistrate even before trial to seek bail; a judge can decide whether to grant bail after hearing the wife. But bail cannot be granted by the police at the police station itself.

Government sources said the magistrate would ensure that bail is granted only after the husband agrees to grant compensation to the wife as provided in the Bill. The quantum of compensation, too, will be decided by the magistrate, as per the Bill. "There were fears and we have plugged the holes ... nothing has been done under pressure," Prasad said in response to a question.

Friday is the last day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament. If the Bill is cleared by the upper house, it will have to go back to the Lok Sabha for approval of the amendments.

The proposed law also addresses "nikah halala", which requires the divorced woman to marry someone else and consummate the marriage if she wants to remarry her husband. The significant changes, long demanded by the opposition, come ahead of the state elections later this year and the 2019 national polls.