GUWAHATI: Two years after the Supreme Court delivered a landmark verdict on Triple Talaq, striking it down as unconstitutional by 3:2 majority, the Triple Talaq Bill or the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill has been passed in the Lok Sabha and is set to be tabled in the Rajya Sabha.
While some say that the bill interferes with the personal law of the Muslim community, the Muslim community of Guwahati seems largely to be in favour of the Bill which seeks to make instant Triple Talaq illegal and a punishable offence.
The Lok Sabha on Thursday, July 25 passed the bill to ban instant Triple Talaq with up to three years’ jail for Muslim men who indulge in instant divorce even as the opposition called it a discriminatory legislation and Bharatiya Janata Party ally Janata Dal (United) staged a walkout.
While moving the Triple Talaq bill for consideration, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “Triple Talaq is not an issue of politics, prayer or religion; it is an issue of justice, dignity and empowerment of women.”
Stating that the legislation was needed for gender equality and justice, he argued how Muslim women are being divorced by "Talaq-e-Biddat" despite the August 2017 Supreme Court verdict, striking down the instant divorce.
“Since January 2017, as many as 574 triple talaq cases and since the Supreme Court order, more than 300 such cases were reported by the media,” stated minister RS Prasad.
Muslim women of Guwahati rejoiced when the bill was earlier passed in the Lok Sabha last year. “Talaq-e-Biddat was never in favour of the women. If the bill is rightfully enforced, Muslim men will not be able to misuse the law for their own benefit and we’ll be provided with allowance in the form of maintenance which was not the case earlier,” said a woman on the condition of anonymity.
Now that the Bill has been passed in the Lok Sabha, she said, “It’s been two years since the SC gave its verdict against Talaq-e-Biddat. Since then, we had been waiting for the formation of a strict law. Three years of jail term sounds good but first, it has to be passed in the Rajya Sabha as well.”
In the same vein, Baharun Saikia, an advocate of Gauhati High Court who has herself been a victim of Triple Talaq expressed, “We the victims of Triple Talaq have high hopes that the bill will be passed at the earliest. Once the bill is passed, the law will become fair for women as the men who practice Triple Talaq will not be able to declare talaq without proper reasoning.”
The Gauhati High Court as well as the Family Court has seen cases of misuse of Triple Talaq. While most of these incidents go unreported, there are some women who gather the courage to approach the court and file a case against their spouses.
A case had been registered at the Family Court in 2017 wherein a woman reported that she had gone to her father’s house for some time and when she returned, her husband had already married another woman claiming that he had sent a letter addressed to her announcing talaq. In another case registered nine months ago, a woman had been sent an e-mail by the husband that carried an announcement for their talaq.
“Triple Talaq is not an issue of politics, prayer or religion; it is an issue of justice, dignity and empowerment of women,” Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad
Triple Talaq Bill not about women empowerment, feel some
The proposed Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill has provisions for imprisonment and fines for anyone invoking it. It also deals with subsistence allowance to a Muslim woman and her children from the estranged man as well as custodial rights of minor children.
However, some feel that the proposed Bill comes with certain loopholes and does not empower women in the true sense.
Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury, a senior advocate at the Gauhati High Court told G Plus, “Sometimes, women misuse the law to harass their husbands and in-laws. And that is my only problem with such women-centric laws. But if the law that comes into effect can avoid such lacunas and be all inclusive, I will welcome the law.”
He further attacked the BJP government stating, “There are many other women issues that need to be focussed on including health and education. Instead, the ruling party is busy focusing on this Bill that’s dividing communities and driving people away.”
Speaking to G Plus about the loopholes in the proposed bill, Advocate Baharun Saikia said, “The only loophole I notice in the Bill is the women community’s demand for the child’s custody. A kid belongs to both parents and they both must have complete rights to fight for the custody of the child and for visitation rights. And if the child is a major, above 18 years of age, he/she must be allowed to decide who he/she wants to stay with.”
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi opposes Bill
The Congress and opposition parties have spoken in one voice against Triple Talaq Bill.
Among other members of the Congress party, Kaliabor MP Gaurav Gogoi has also opposed the Bill stating that the SC had not asked the government to make triple talaq a criminal offence.
Gogoi claimed that the government's intention by introducing such a bill was to "demonise and penalise Muslim men." He added that the government should take views of organisations like the Muslim Personal Law Board in account and "shape the bill more in accordance with the constitution."
“If you want to protect Muslim women who are divorced by their husbands, you should also give protection to Hindu and Parsi women who are deserted by their husbands,” he further added.
Similarly, Congress party’s Jothimani said the BJP sought to divide and rule Muslims through this Bill. The party’s leader in the House, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, said that existing laws related to domestic violence and dowry were enough to prosecute marital discord in Muslim families.
The Congress demanded that the bill be sent to the Standing Committee for review, saying it targets Muslim community of the country.