Congress will scrap the triple talaq bill if comes to power : MP

"I promise you people that when the Congress government comes to power in 2019, we will scrap this law. But it is also a given that any law that is brought for empowerment of women, by whichever government, will have Congress' support."

Shobhit Kalra
Published on: 8 Feb 2019 7:09 AM GMT
Congress will scrap the triple talaq bill if comes to power : MP
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Congress will scrap the triple talaq bill if comes to power: MP

Silchar: Mahila Congress chief and MP Sushmita Dev said the triple talaq bill would be scrapped if Congress was voted to power. The Member of Parliament also said that Congress opposed the bill as it is a weapon PM Modi wanted to use to put Muslim men in jail. The decision will make muslim men and women confront each other.

Sushmita, Lok Sabha MP from Silchar, also said Congress had received "crores of letters" from Muslim women who carried out signature campaigns and rebelled against the proposed law and that the party had opposed the law in Parliament based on this.

"I promise you people that when the Congress government comes to power in 2019, we will scrap this law. But it is also a given that any law that is brought for empowerment of women, by whichever government, will have Congress' support," Sushmita was quoted saying.

Even as her unilateral dismissal of the proposed law appeared to contradict Congress's previous, more nuanced position, on the subject, the party's media managers rushed to clarify that Dev's statement was only a reiteration of Congress's stated position that penal provisions in the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018, must be dropped.

Asserting that Congress had opposed instant triple talaq even before it was struck down as illegal by the Supreme Court - where Congress lawyers appeared pro bono for some affected women - the party emphasised its opposition to passage of the triple talaq bill was on the ground that it did not answer the crucial question of how a man would provide for or maintain a woman and her children from within the confines of a jail.

"Congress's position has been clear that this bill cannot be used as a tool to deprive a woman and her family of maintenance. Modiji has not responded to these concerns raised by Congress, and it is for this reason that we opposed the bill," party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

In December 2018, the government moved a fresh bill in Lok Sabha to make triple talaq a penal offence resulting in a jail term of three years for the husband.

This statement is sure to create political turbulence as the central government has already taken a strong stance on the triple talaq bill and is adamant to make it effective in the coming time.

Shobhit Kalra

Shobhit Kalra

Writer has 10 years of experience in digital media. Presently working as Chief Sub Editor at newstrack.com. An avid reader and always willing to learn new things and techniques.

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