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Instant triple talaq to be criminal offence, Centre clears executive order

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday signed off on an ordinance to make instant triple talaq an offence. The cabinet approval for enacting the law by an executive order comes nearly 10 months after the NDA government first moved a bill in Parliament.

Instant triple talaq, the Islamic practice that allows men to divorce their wives immediately by uttering the word “talaq” thrice, had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in August last year.

Read updates: BJP urges Congress to support triple talaq ordinance

Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters there had been 201 cases where triple talaq had been used to divorce Muslim women even after the top court’s verdict.

“So there was compelling necessity to come up with an ordinance,” Prasad said.

The government expects the provision of a jail term of up to three years and a fine in the law to deter Muslim men from opting for instant divorce. The woman will be also entitled to maintenance.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 had been cleared by the Lok Sabha in December last year but it had been stuck in the Rajya Sabha where the NDA does not have a majority. The opposition contended there were gaps in the proposed law that left it open to misuse.

In August, the government had agreed to three changes to make the bill more palatable to opposition parties and address some of the criticism aimed at it.

In its final form, the law only allows a woman, or close relatives, to file the police complaint against her husband for instant triple talaq,

The accused is entitled to seek bail from a court, not a police officer, but the magistrate would have to hear the wife. “The rationale… is that this is a private dispute between wide and husband so wife must be heard,” Prasad said.

The victim wife would also get the right to withdraw the complaint against her husband if the couple reaches a compromise before the magistrate.

First Published: Sep 19, 2018 12:16 IST

Source: HindustanTimes