India needs a non-sectarian, gender-neutral law that addresses desertion of spouses.
❖ All declarations of instant triple talaq, including in written or electronic form, will be void (i.e. not enforceable in law) and illegal.
❖ Instant triple talaq remains a cognizable offence with a maximum of three years imprisonment and a fine. The amount of any fine is at the discretion of the magistrate hearing the case.
❖ The offence will be cognizable only if information relating to the offence is given by the wife or one of her blood relatives.
❖ The offence is non-bailable. However, there is a provision that the magistrate hearing the case may grant bail to the accused. The bail may be granted only after hearing the wife and if the magistrate is satisfied that there exist reasonable grounds for granting bail.
❖ The wife is entitled to a subsistence allowance. The amount is to be decided by the magistrate.
❖ The wife is entitled to seek custody of her minor children from the marriage. The manner of custody will be determined by the magistrate.
❖ The offence may be compounded (i.e. legal proceedings halted) by the magistrate upon the request of the woman against whom talaq has been declared.
Background :
▪ The government says its main objective is to give effect to the Supreme Court’s 2017 verdict declaring instant triple talaq illegal.
• In August 2017 the Supreme Court of India declared the triple talaq, which enables Muslim men, but not women, to instantly divorce their wives, to be unconstitutional. The then Chief Justice of India, Jagdish Singh Khehar, asked Parliament to pass legislation governing marriage and divorce in the Muslim community.
• On 28 December 2017, citing this Supreme Court order and multiple cases of instant triple talaq in India, the Modi Government introduced The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017. The bill proposed to make instant triple talaq in any form — spoken, in writing or by electronic means - illegal and void. Punishment for breach of the law was to include up to three years in jail for the husband. This bill was passed by the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India on the same day, but was stalled by the opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house.
2017 -
• The BJP Government formulated the bill after 100 cases of instant triple talaq in India since the Supreme Court judgement in August 2017. On 28 December 2017, Lok Sabha passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017. The bill makes instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) in any form — spoken, in writing or by electronic means such as email, SMS and instant messengers illegal and void, with up to three years in jail for the husband.
• MPs from CPI(M), RJD, AIMIM, BJD, AIADMK and IUML opposed the Bill, calling it arbitrary in nature and a faulty proposal, while Congress supported the Bill tabled in Lok Sabha by law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. 19 amendments were moved in Lok Sabha but all were rejected.
2018 -
• The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill (2018) was a bill proposed to the Parliament of India. It was intended to protect the marriage rights of Muslim women in India by banning the triple talaq, which enables Muslim men, but not women, to instantly divorce their wives. The bill was passed in 2018 and 2019 by the Lok Sabha, but lapsed after not being passed by the Rajya Sabha.
• On 19 September 2018, noting that the practice of instant triple talaq had continued unabated despite the Supreme Court's order, the government issued the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2018, to make the practice illegal and void.
• An ordinance introduced into the Indian parliament lapses if either the Parliament does not approve it within six weeks of reassembly, or if disapproving resolutions are passed by both houses. Hence, a new bill named The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018 was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
- The bill was passed by Lok Sabha on 25th July 2019 and then by Rajya Sabha on 30th July 2019. This Bill making instant triple talaq ( talaq-ebiddat ) a criminal offence, amidst persistent doubts whether it ought to be treated as a crime or just a civil case. It is true that the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, is a diluted version of the Bill as it was originally conceived.
❖ All declarations of instant triple talaq, including in written or electronic form, will be void (i.e. not enforceable in law) and illegal.
❖ Instant triple talaq remains a cognizable offence with a maximum of three years imprisonment and a fine. The amount of any fine is at the discretion of the magistrate hearing the case.
❖ The offence will be cognizable only if information relating to the offence is given by the wife or one of her blood relatives.
❖ The offence is non-bailable. However, there is a provision that the magistrate hearing the case may grant bail to the accused. The bail may be granted only after hearing the wife and if the magistrate is satisfied that there exist reasonable grounds for granting bail. ❖ The wife is entitled to a subsistence allowance. The amount is to be decided by the magistrate.
❖ The wife is entitled to seek custody of her minor children from the marriage. The manner of custody will be determined by the magistrate.
❖ The offence may be compounded (i.e. legal proceedings halted) by the magistrate upon the request of the woman against whom talaq has been declared.
Background :
▪ The government says its main objective is to give effect to the Supreme Court’s 2017 verdict declaring instant triple talaq illegal.
• In August 2017 the Supreme Court of India declared the triple talaq, which enables Muslim men, but not women, to instantly divorce their wives, to be unconstitutional. The then Chief Justice of India, Jagdish Singh Khehar, asked Parliament to pass legislation governing marriage and divorce in the Muslim community.
• On 28 December 2017, citing this Supreme Court order and multiple cases of instant triple talaq in India, the Modi Government introduced The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017. The bill proposed to make instant triple talaq in any form — spoken, in writing or by electronic means - illegal and void. Punishment for breach of the law was to include up to three years in jail for the husband. This bill was passed by the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India on the same day, but was stalled by the opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house.
2017 -
• The BJP Government formulated the bill after 100 cases of instant triple talaq in India since the Supreme Court judgement in August 2017. On 28 December 2017, Lok Sabha passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017. The bill makes instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) in any form — spoken, in writing or by electronic means such as email, SMS and instant messengers illegal and void, with up to three years in jail for the husband.
• MPs from CPI(M), RJD, AIMIM, BJD, AIADMK and IUML opposed the Bill, calling it arbitrary in nature and a faulty proposal, while Congress supported the Bill tabled in Lok Sabha by law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. 19 amendments were moved in Lok Sabha but all were rejected.
2018 -
• The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill (2018) was a bill proposed to the Parliament of India. It was intended to protect the marriage rights of Muslim women in India by banning the triple talaq, which enables Muslim men, but not women, to instantly divorce their wives. The bill was passed in 2018 and 2019 by the Lok Sabha, but lapsed after not being passed by the Rajya Sabha.
• On 19 September 2018, noting that the practice of instant triple talaq had continued unabated despite the Supreme Court's order, the government issued the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2018, to make the practice illegal and void.
• An ordinance introduced into the Indian parliament lapses if either the Parliament does not approve it within six weeks of reassembly, or if disapproving resolutions are passed by both houses. Hence, a new bill named The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018 was introduced in the Lok Sabha by Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
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