http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/uncertainty-over-triple-talaq-bill-in-rajya-sabha/article22353730.ece
Uncertainty over triple talaq Bill in Rajya Sabha SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT NEW DELHI, JANUARY 02, 2018 21:59 IST UPDATED: JANUARY 02, 2018 22:00 IST SHARE ARTICLE PRINT A A A Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad speaks in the Rajya Sabha in New Delhi on Tuesday. Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad speaks in the Rajya Sabha in New Delhi on Tuesday. | Photo Credit: PTI/ TV GRAB MORE-IN Parliament proceedings Govt. has rejected demands from Opposition and NDA allies for review by a select committee The government has rejected the Opposition’s demand to send the controversial triple talaq legislation criminalising instant triple talaq, or talaq-e-biddat, to a select committee. The Lok Sabha had cleared the ‘Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill on December 28. It will be tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday and four hours have been allotted for a debate. The Opposition however, has the requisite numbers to refer the Bill to a select committee. On Tuesday at 4 p.m., the Business Advisory Committee, which has members from all parties and allocates time to debate various legislations in Parliament, met. According to sources at the meeting, Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma pressed to send the legislation to a select committee. The party has vocally opposed the “criminalisation” clause in the Bill. It is, however, treading cautiously to avoid taking a position against what is seen as a Bill that favours Muslim women. It is learnt that when the government discussed the time allocation for the debate on the talaq legislation, Mr. Azad vociferously protested, saying that the Bill must be sent to a select committee instead of discussing the duration of debate. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar, his deputy Vijay Goel and senior MP Bhupender Yadav repesented the government at the meeting. Trinamool tightrope Interestingly, members of the Trinamool Congress, who have been ambivalent on the legislation, backed the demand for referring the Bill to a committee as it needed fine tuning. The party was represented by MP Derek O’ Brien. The Trinamool had not participated in the debate in Lok Sabha. “At least 30% of the voters in West Bengal are Muslims. There is a perception that the Muslim women are for the Bill and the men are against it. So we have to walk a fine line here,” a Trinamool MP said, explaining the party’s dilemma. In a break, NDA ally Telugu Desam Party also supported the Opposition and asked the government to send the legislation for further deliberations. The other political parties including the AIADMK, DMK, BJD, NCP, RJD, SP and the BSP have already made their stance against the “criminality” clause clear. ‘No further delay’ The government, meanwhile, is adamant that the Bill be passed in its current format without delay. “We are having continuous talks with the Opposition parties, including the Congress. We have told the Congress that since they have not pressed for any amendments in the Lok Sabha, they should do the same in Rajya Sabha,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said. For now the fate of the Bill remains uncertain. “We will get to know only tomorrow (Wednesday) morning if the government has had a change of heart considering the unanimous demand from the Opposition to examine the Bill further,” one of the MPs said. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Sukla Sen <[email protected]> Date: 2 January 2018 at 17:16 Subject: 'On Triple Talaq Bill, A Battle Of Nerves Between BJP And Congress': Tabling of the Bill in the Rajya Sabha Deferred to Tomorrow To: foil-l <[email protected]> [<<(The Bill) was listed to be introduced in the Rajya Sabha today, but will only be taken up tomorrow now as ruling party BJP attempts to build consensus on passing it in the Upper House, where it is in a minority. The Lok Sabha passed the bill last week. Several parties including the Congress, the Left and the two big players from Tamil Nadu, AIADMK and the DMK, favour sending the bill to a Parliament panel called the select committee to review the bill and nuance some provisions that opposition leaders say could end up hurting the interest of Muslim women rather than helping them. ... Opposition parties met this morning to decide their plan in the Rajya Sabha on the bill, which was passed smoothly last Thursday by the Lok Sabha, where the government has a clear majority. There were only muted protests from opposition parties which put their reservations on record but did not really push for amendments. ... In the Rajya Sabha, however, the opposition also has on its side this time parties like the AIADMK and Biju Janata Dal, which usually help the BJP-led government pass key legislation in the upper house. Both parties have said they would like a review of the "Triple Talaq" bill. ... The Congress Party, which had repeatedly urged the government to refer the bill to a standing committee for review before passing the bill in the Lok Sabha, has been been careful to underline that it strongly backs any move to abolish the "Triple Talaq", but wants provisions to be strengthened to effectively safeguard the interests of women. The Congress and several parties have opposed a provision for a three-year jail term in the bill for a Muslim man who says "talaq" thrice to divorce his wife; they argue that if a man who abandons his family goes to jail, he will not be able to provide for them. There are also concerns that if the law is passed, it would give anyone the right to complain to the police about the "Triple Talaq" to register a case and arrest the man.>> The deferment keeps alive the highly desirable possibility of the Bill being referred to the Select Committee. (The Bill, btw, has been piloted by the Law and Justice Minister. If gender justice had been the goal, it should have had been the charge of the Women & Child Development Minister, who, incidentally, was not even a member of the ministerial committee that drew up the Bill.) In such an event, the Committee must arrange for wider consultations. Especially with the Muslim women's groups fighting for abolition of instant triple talaq. The suggestions received should be reconciled, as far as possible, and these are to be taken on board before legislating. There's no bonafide ground for any tearing hurry. The Supreme Court, at the behest of the aggrieved Muslim women, has already adjudged instant triple talaq to be void. So, even after instant triple talaq a Muslim marriage does no longer stand dissolved. Any incident of instant triple talaq, in the meanwhile, should be dealt with under the Domestic Violence Act. Maybe, the BJP would defer tabling the Bill till it can cobble up a majority in favour of the Bill in the current form so as to dodge scrutiny by a parliamentary panel and wider consultations with the legitimate stakeholders. One has to keep one's fingers crossed.] https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/triple-talaq-bill-in-rajya-sabha-tomorrow- government-tries-for-consensus-1794726 On Triple Talaq Bill, A Battle Of Nerves Between BJP And Congress The government is determined to pass the "Triple Talaq' bill in the winter session. Opposition parties met this morning to decide their plan in the Rajya Sabha on the bill, which was passed smoothly last Thursday by the Lok Sabha, where the government has a clear majority. All India | Reported by Sunetra Choudhury, Sunil Prabhu, Edited by Shylaja Varma | Updated: January 02, 2018 14:08 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Special offer! Flat 80% Off @ Rado, Rolex & Omega Watches (Royal Watches Club) Amazing Engineering and Science Projects for Your Child (Magic Crate) 5 SHARES EMAIL PRINT 6 COMMENTS On Triple Talaq Bill, A Battle Of Nerves Between BJP And Congress Click to Play The bill proposes three-year jail with no scope for bail for practising "Triple Talaq". NEW DELHI: The landmark bill which makes instant "Triple Talaq" a criminal offence and proposes a three-year jail term, was listed to be introduced in the Rajya Sabha today, but will only be taken up tomorrow now as ruling party BJP attempts to build consensus on passing it in the Upper House, where the government is in a minority. The Lok Sabha passed the bill last week, but it must be passed by both houses to become law. A battle of nerves is on. Several parties including the Congress, the Left and the two big players from Tamil Nadu, AIADMK and the DMK, favour sending the bill to a Parliament panel called the select committee to review the bill and nuance some provisions that opposition leaders say could end up hurting the interest of Muslim women rather than helping them. The government, which says the bill is "for the sisters of the Muslim community, for the dignity of women, gender equality," is determined to pass the bill in the winter session, of which three days remain after today. Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi attacked the Congress this morning for what he called its "confused" stand. "These days a number of reforms are being brought in. The Triple Talaq Bill is one of them...The Congress takes one step forward and then 10 steps back. The party is confused on Triple Talaq," the Minority Affairs Minister said, adding, "Muslim women are happy, but I don't know why the Congress is sad." Opposition parties met this morning to decide their plan in the Rajya Sabha on the bill, which was passed smoothly last Thursday by the Lok Sabha, where the government has a clear majority. There were only muted protests from opposition parties which put their reservations on record but did not really push for amendments. The government has been hoping that projecting the Muslim Women Protection of Rights in Marriage Bill 2017 as an instrument that restores the dignity of Muslim women will discourage parties such as the Congress from raising a full-throated objection in the Rajya Sabha too. In the Rajya Sabha, however, the opposition also has on its side this time parties like the AIADMK and Biju Janata Dal, which usually help the BJP-led government pass key legislation in the upper house. Both parties have said they would like a review of the "Triple Talaq" bill. Sources in Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress said the party will oppose the bill in the Rajya Sabha over the "criminalisation clause." The party did not oppose it in the Lok Sabha because it knew the bill would be passed anyway given the government's superior numbers, the sources said. The Congress Party, which had repeatedly urged the government to refer the bill to a standing committee for review before passing the bill in the Lok Sabha, has been been careful to underline that it strongly backs any move to abolish the "Triple Talaq", but wants provisions to be strengthened to effectively safeguard the interests of women. The Congress and several parties have opposed a provision for a three-year jail term in the bill for a Muslim man who says "talaq" thrice to divorce his wife; they argue that if a man who abandons his family goes to jail, he will not be able to provide for them. There are also concerns that if the law is passed, it would give anyone the right to complain to the police about the "Triple Talaq" to register a case and arrest the man. -- Peace Is Doable -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
