Activists divided over Talaq Bill in Lok Sabha

New Delhi: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, taking a crucial step ahead to make talaq-e-biddat or instant triple talaq an illegal act that would be punishable with up to three years in jail for the husband of the affected wife.

Initiating the discussion, Sushmita Dev (Congress) said that triple talaq was a regressive practice but there were apprehensions about its misuse against Muslim men as has happened in the marital rape law.

AIADMK’s A. Anwar Raja expressed apprehension about the criminality aspect of the proposed law that was not going to help women but put them under penury.

BJD’s Tathagata Satpathy said, “We support the Bill but not the way it is intended to be applied on the ground.”

A. Sampath (CPM) also demanded the Bill need to be referred to Standing Committee. “As you are saying it is very important, historic bill. It is therefore important to be referred to the Standing Committee,” he said.

Meanwhile, the women’s rights group spearheading the movement against instant triple talaq called the passage of the Bill as “historic”, while some others said it was a “sad day” and termed the move “shocking”.

Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, which was one of the petitioners in the Supreme Court on the issue of talaq-e- biddat, said that Lok Sabha proceedings indicate that Muslim women’s voices have been heard across the political spectrum.

“What is historic is that the Congress party also supported it. Both the government and the key Opposition party are on board. Congress acknowledged the need for a law (on instant triple talaq). It is symbolic of the fact that Muslim women's voices have now been heard across the political class — that is a big achievement in itself,” said Zakia Soman, co-founder of the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan.

Senior advocate Indira Jaising, who was a counsel for Bebaak Collective on the issue of triple talaq in Supreme Court, however, expressed shock. “Very shocked to hear that Lok Sabha has passed the Bill. I would have expected the Bill to go to the Standing Committee before it came to the Lok Sabha,” Jaising said.

The president of the All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board, Shaista Amber, welcomed the tabling of the Bill but insisted that it should be in the light of Quran.