Triple Talaq Bill to worsen the plight of Muslim women: Hasnain Masoodi

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Friday vehemently opposed the Triple Talaq bill in the Lok Sabha, saying the bill will worsen the plight of the Muslim women in the country.
Participating in the debate on the Bill, party’s MP Hasnain Masoodi expressed anguish over the efforts to malign a religion that fourteen and a half centuries back, for the first time, provided for the rights of women including right to property and declared marriage as civil contract with right of women to pull out of the marriage in certain circumstances.
Contesting the claim of ruling party that the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2019 was to bring relief to Muslim Women he said, “The proposed Bill is insensitive to gender issues therefore the law will worsen of the plight of Muslim Women in the country.”
Emphasizing that the Bill was a piece of class legislation as it picked up only one community for legislation without any intelligible differential he said, “Therefore the law is not permissible under the Constitution.”
Masoodi while refuting the claim of Union law Minister that the Parliament was competent to enact the law said, “Once Triple Talaq was held void and illegal by Supreme Court there was no need to enact the law as Supreme Court Judgment was law of the land to be followed in triple talaq matters.”
Masoodi refuted the claim that the Bill was brought in compliance of Supreme Court Judgment as the Judgment did not direct criminalization of triple talaq as was being done by the proposed law. “The net result of holding triple talaq void and illegal was that the marriage subsisted and relationship of husband and wife continued notwithstanding triple talaq and making triple talaq punishable with three year imprisonment would make the family fall apart.”
Masoodi asked as to how the Bill would help strengthen family, promote matrimonial harmony and unite broken families, “The bill provides for the prosecution of husband by the wife, his arrest and detention and imprisonment for three years and at the same time makes him duty bound to maintain his wife.”
While questioning the wisdom and competence to declare a pure civil matter as criminal offence category he said, “It is indeed a legally impermissible attempt of make breach of contract an offence, with a provision for arrest with tough bail conditions and punishable with imprisonment.”