The Centre said on Friday that the country’s “real mood” favoured abolishing the contentious practice of triple talaq, asserting that the issue should not be confused with the government’s push for a
The Centre said on Friday that the country’s “real mood” favoured abolishing the contentious practice of triple talaq, asserting that the issue should not be confused with the government’s push for a uniform civil code (UCC).
The All Indian Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and some other Muslim outfits had announced on Thursday to boycott a questionnaire circulated by India’s Law Commission on UCC, and vowed to block any attempt to abolish Islamic family laws, comprising triple talaq and polygamy.
Information and broadcasting minister M Venkaiah Naidu asked the AIMPLB on Friday to join the debate. “Let there be an enlightened debate. You put forth your point of view. Let a consensus be evolved. Why are you trying to bring in the Prime Minister’s name and call him a dictator ”
The Muslim body had accused the Narendra Modi government of waging a “war against the community and killing the country’s plurality by trying to impose one civil law on all religions.”
“The real mood of the country is that people want triple talaq to end. People do not want any discrimination against women on the basis of faith. The issues are gender justice, non-discrimination and dignity of women,” said Mr Naidu.
In an affidavit in the Supreme Court, the government has opposed triple talaq and polygamy among Muslims and favoured a relook on grounds of gender equality and secularism.
Mr Naidu said the Law Commission wanted a thorough discussion on UCC and if the AIMPLB did not want to participate in the debate, it was their choice. He said UCC was enshrined in Article 44 of the Directive Principles of the Constitution and not brought in by the NDA government or PM Modi. He asserted that nothing was going to be forced upon people, but the government definitely wanted a debate.
Meanwhile, Union law minister Ravishankar Prasad said in Patna that over a dozen Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Tunisia, Morocco, Iran and Egypt have regulated triple talaq, and there was nothing wrong if India also did the same. “If Islamic countries can regulate the practice by enacting law, and it has not been found against the sharia, how can it be wrong in India, which is a secular country ”
The Law Commission on October 7 circulated a questionnaire seeking to know whether triple talaq should be abolished, retained or retained with suitable changes. The Commission also sought public opinion on a common civil law to “protect vulnerable groups and harmonise cultural practices.”
The Law Commission’s move coincided with the Centre’s submission in the Supreme Court that triple talaq and polygamy were unconstitutional and should be abolished as women’s dignity was not negotiable.
The unprecedented submission came in response to the AIMPLB’s earlier assertion in the court that any intervention in family law amounts to violating the Muslim community’s fundamental rights.
