December 2, 2017 | By Sikh Siyasat Bureau
New Delhi: After the Central Government in its statement in November said that it was contemplating to make instant-triple talaq (divorce practiced by Muslims) a punishable offence. The inter-ministerial committee formed by the Central Government at that time for making triple-talaq or talaq-e-biddat a punishable offence, on Friday reportedly came up with a draft law which makes it a “cognizable and non-bailable” offence, punishable with three years jail and a monetary fine.
Reported draft law — Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act — also allows a woman who has been given instant triple talaq to move court, seeking “subsistence allowance” for herself and dependent children, as well as custody of minor children. This bill expected to be tabled in the parliament during the current winter session, said the media sources while quoting the government officials.
The proposed law, which empowers Muslim women, applies to instant triple talaq in “oral, written, electronic or any other form”. Any declaration of talaq-e-biddat by a Muslim man shall be “illegal and void”, the draft reportedly reads.
It is said that the terms of the proposed legislation were finalised after discussions, by a Group of Ministers (GoM) appointed by the Union government which included Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley and Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Apparently, explaining the rationale behind the new legislation the media reports whilst quoting government sources said that the practice of instant triple talaq has not stopped despite the Supreme Court of India (SCI) order. Further the sources also maintained that the Muslim Personal Law Board had not been able to do anything on the issue despite its assurances to the SCI.
The Centre has forwarded the draft law to states, and asked them to send their views soon. Though marriage and divorce figure in the concurrent list, the Centre thought it proper, in view of the recommendations of the Sarkaria Commission, to consult the states, reads the statement of an official published in an English vernacular.
The law, however, will not apply to Jammu and Kashmir.
On August 22th this year, three of the five judges on the Constitution Bench — Justices Rohinton F Nariman, Uday U Lalit and Kurian Joseph — called the practice un-Islamic and “arbitrary” and disagreed with the view that triple talaq was an integral part of religious practice.
But the minority ruling of then Chief Justice of India J S Khehar and Justice S Abdul Nazeer underlined the primacy of Muslim personal law and said the practice enjoyed constitutional protection and was beyond the scope of judicial scrutiny, reports the Indian Express (IE).
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