Injustice to Muslim women undone, says Arun Jaitley

New Delhi: After the Supreme Court held instant triple talaq invalid, several members of the Union Cabinet hailed the verdict of the constitution bench of the Supreme Court.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley said that the judgment “undoes” the injustice to Muslim women who were victims of unilateral termination of marriage. The government had earlier stated that the matter of Triple Talaq is a matter of gender justice and gender equality which was not linked to nay faith or religion.

Minority affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, “We should not adopt a rigid attitude, but choose a reformist approach towards social evil. The Central government will talk to all the political parties on framing a law on this issue. The issue is not of a religion instead it is a matter of social reform.” The government further claimed that it had coordinated with Muslim women so that it could be placed before the apex court as the stand of the government. Speaking to reporters, law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “This is not the matter of any religion. The point here is about the gender equality, gender justice and gender dignity. This is the victory of India’s constitutional values.” He further added that the Narendra Modi government did not buckle under pressure like the Rajiv Gandhi government did in the 1980s.

Minister of state for information and broadcasting Rajyavardhan Rathore said that the verdict is a huge step forward for women’s rights. Minister of food and public distribution Ram Vilas Paswan also hailed the judgment terming it as a “historic decision” that will go a long way in ensuring right to equality for women.