DNA Edit: Triple talaq bill - The plight of Muslim women must come to an end

The Monsoon session of Parliament, scheduled to begin on July 18, will be crucial in terms of the legislative business it aspires to accomplish.

Several key Bills are set to be passed, including the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill. Commonly known as the Triple Talaq Bill, its fate in Rajya Sabha will, in turn, decide the future of millions of women who are victims of unilateral oral divorce, which has, for a thousand years, been the prerogative of Muslim men.

The Supreme Court had lobbed the ball to Parliament’s court, so to speak, when it declared the practice unconstitutional and directed the government to bring legislation in six months to govern marriage and divorce in the Muslim community. The Bill seeks bipartisan support and the BJP has shown eagerness to involve Opposition parties to steer it to a logical end.

While appealing to the conscience of BSP supremo Mayawati, TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, and Congress’s Sonia Gandhi, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that the issue at hand had nothing to do with politics and religion. By calling it a matter of “women’s pride and justice”, he had sought support from women legislators in particular who should express solidarity with the sufferings of Muslim women. Any opposition to the Bill, especially from these three powerful women politicians, will sadly prove that political schisms are far more important than a social revolution.

Despite knowing that the oral form of divorce does a grave injustice to Muslim women, none of the parties showed the gumption to bring an end to this regressive, patriarchal tradition for fear of upsetting religious sentiment.

Today, when the BJP is trying to bring reforms, it is being castigated for targeting Muslims. The Bill had sailed through Lok Sabha despite strong objections, coming in the form of proposals for amendments, from RJD, BJD, AIMIM and All India Muslim League, which purport to uphold minorities’ rights.

In reality, they are supporting powerful religious leaders who hold the key to vote banks. Secularism in India has long been reduced to appeasement and the most vocal proponents of it merely pay lip-service to serious causes like triple talaq. They are quick to forget that talaq-e-biddat, instant divorce, or talaq-e-mughallazah (irrevocable divorce) has been banned in 22 countries, several of which are Muslim-dominated.

India’s two neighbours, Pakistan and Bangladesh are part of that league. And, yet a ‘secular’ country like India lacks the courage to take the bull by the horns. These double standards expose politicians for what they really are: Opportunists. If Opposition parties again rally together to disrupt the Monsoon session, much the way they derailed the Budget session, then Parliament will have failed its people.

The Members of Parliament, who are the democratic representatives of the political process, will have abdicated their primary responsibility of lawmaking. The BJP can only issue sincere appeals to bridge the political divide that has grown more entrenched in the recent past. If interests of self-preservation are more important than the plight of Muslim women, it signals the defeat of democracy.