Triple Talaq Bill violates fundamental rights of Muslims: Asaduddin Owaisi

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday said that the Triple Talaq Bill violates the fundamental rights of Muslims.

''The triple talaq bill violates fundamental rights of Muslims. There is an absence of consistency with the existing legal framework. The bill says the husband will be sent to jail, and it also says he will have to pay allowance... How can a person in jail pay allowance?" Owaisi said in Lok Sabha while referring to the provision that a woman given triple talaq will have the right to seek maintenance.

Owaisi slammed Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad over failure to 'discriminate between civil law and criminal law'.

"The Union law minister has failed to discriminate between civil law and criminal law. Not a single Muslim country has a penal provision. Triple talaq is a verbal and emotional abuse," Owaisi said.

He also alleged that the Centre gave an advantage to the offenders and was not helping the situation.

"Your dream of having more Muslims in jail will be achieved. Please send the bill to the Standing Committee. You are forcing a Muslim woman to file an FIR against her husband. You are giving a handle to the Muslim man, who will have 90 days. If you are true to your intentions, create a corpus of 1000 cr," he added.

Two amendments moved by Owaisi was negated in Lok Sabha.

Earlier in the day, the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2017, which seeks to criminalise the practice of instant Triple Talaq, was tabled in the Lok Sabha by Prasad.

Prasad said the proposed law is for women's rights and justice and not regarding any prayer, ritual or religion.

The draft bill states that "any pronouncement of talaq by a person upon his wife, by words, either spoken or written or in electronic form or in any other manner whatsoever, shall be void and illegal".

There is also a provision for imposing pecuniary fine violators and imprisonment for up to three years.

Triple Talaq is the practice of Muslim men divorcing their wives by saying "talaq" thrice. The constitution allows Muslims, the biggest minority in the country, to regulate marriages, divorces and inheritance through their own civil code.

But in August, the Supreme Court had ruled that the practice is "void", "illegal" and "unconstitutional".

As many as 22 Muslim countries have banned the triple talaq.