The government has rejected the Opposition’s demand to send the controversial triple talaq legislation criminalising instant triple talaq, or talaq-e-biddat, to a select committee.
The Lok Sabha had cleared the ‘Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill on December 28. It will be tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday and four hours have been allotted for a debate. The Opposition however, has the requisite numbers to refer the Bill to a select committee.
On Tuesday at 4 p.m., the Business Advisory Committee, which has members from all parties and allocates time to debate various legislations in Parliament, met. According to sources at the meeting, Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma pressed to send the legislation to a select committee.
The party has vocally opposed the “criminalisation” clause in the Bill. It is, however, treading cautiously to avoid taking a position against what is seen as a Bill that favours Muslim women.
It is learnt that when the government discussed the time allocation for the debate on the talaq legislation, Mr. Azad vociferously protested, saying that the Bill must be sent to a select committee instead of discussing the duration of debate. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar, his deputy Vijay Goel and senior MP Bhupender Yadav repesented the government at the meeting.
Trinamool tightrope
Interestingly, members of the Trinamool Congress, who have been ambivalent on the legislation, backed the demand for referring the Bill to a committee as it needed fine tuning. The party was represented by MP Derek O’ Brien. The Trinamool had not participated in the debate in Lok Sabha.
“At least 30% of the voters in West Bengal are Muslims. There is a perception that the Muslim women are for the Bill and the men are against it. So we have to walk a fine line here,” a Trinamool MP said, explaining the party’s dilemma.
In a break, NDA ally Telugu Desam Party also supported the Opposition and asked the government to send the legislation for further deliberations. The other political parties including the AIADMK, DMK, BJD, NCP, RJD, SP and the BSP have already made their stance against the “criminality” clause clear.
‘No further delay’
The government, meanwhile, is adamant that the Bill be passed in its current format without delay. “We are having continuous talks with the Opposition parties, including the Congress. We have told the Congress that since they have not pressed for any amendments in the Lok Sabha, they should do the same in Rajya Sabha,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said.
For now the fate of the Bill remains uncertain. “We will get to know only tomorrow (Wednesday) morning if the government has had a change of heart considering the unanimous demand from the Opposition to examine the Bill further,” one of the MPs said.
