The Rajya Sabha on July 30, 2019, passed the contentious “The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage), Bill 2019 criminalizing instant divorce by a Muslim man uttering Talaq three times in the presence of his Muslim wife.
The “Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage), Bill 2019 makes the utterance of instant Triple Talaq illegal and void, and will attract a jail term of three years for the husband.
The Supreme Court in 2017 by a majority decision 3:2 had declared the practice of instant Triple Talaq unconstitutional.
Now, even on minor tussle with husband, a Muslim wife can say he said triple talaq and the husband will be taken for a drive. With this bill being passed today, not only instant talaq is criminalized but effectively other option as per Sharia is also gone. If a Muslim husband will say talaq once and give few days time before repeating it, will he even remain free to do so?
Pity on the jurisprudence of the lawmakers, a divorce system already declared void by SC is now criminalized too ignoring the fact that the same could very well have been covered under DV Act and 498a of IPC. All this is done overlooking another shameful fact that the misuse of not a single law enacted in the name of women protection is less than 85%. All such laws have just proved to be nothing less than a tool of harassment to wreak havoc on the husband and his family.
Some key features of the Triple TalaqBill:
Any pronouncement of “talaq” by a Muslim husband to his wife in any manner, spoken or written, will be void and illegal.
Any Muslim husband who communicates the “talaq” orally or in writing may face punishment up to three years in jail. The punishment may be also extended.
If a Muslim man pronounces “talaq” to his wife, then the woman and her children are entitled to receive an allowance for subsistence. Such an amount can be determined by a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class.
A Muslim woman is entitled to the custody of her minor children even if her husband has pronounced “talaq” to her.
The offense in pronouncing instant triple talaq is cognizable if the Muslim woman on whom it is pronounced communicates the information to a police officer.
The offense is also compoundable if the Muslim woman insists for the same and the Magistrates allows certain terms and conditions which he may determine.
A person accused of this offense cannot be granted bail unless an application is filed by the accused after a hearing in the presence of the Muslim woman (on whom talaq is pronounced) is conducted and the Magistrate is satisfied with the reasonable grounds for granting bail.
Since the public discussions on this triple talaq began a couple of years back, we've already had innocent men approaching us that they are threatened by allegations of having given triple talaq.
For all the Men who gets implicated or feels threatened by this Triple Talaq law, please keep our helpline number '8882-498-498' and weekly meeting details handy.