Indian bill on track to outlaw 'instant divorce'

By Shuriah Niazi
NEW DELHI (AA) - The government on Thursday introduced a bill in parliament to make "triple talaq" (instant divorce) a criminal offense.

Minister for Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad, while introducing the bill, called it a "historic day" for India. Many members of different opposition parties were opposed to the bill in its present form.

Prasad told the lower house of parliament that the triple talaq bill stood for equality.

The move comes after the practice of instant divorce was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in August. The court voted by 3-2 against the tradition whereby a Muslim man can divorce his wife by saying the word "talaq" -- divorce -- three times.

Thursday's bill proposes a three-year jail term and a fine for any Muslim man who indulges in the practice. The law would be applicable in the entire country except the Jammu Kashmir state in the north.

The bill also entitles Muslim women to maintenance after divorce. It also has a provision for the divorced women to have the custody of their minor children. The offenses under the purview of this bill would be cognizable and non-bailable.

The use of triple talaq has increased in recent years as men divorced their wives via written letters, text messages and even Facebook.

India does not have a homogeneous set of laws on marriage and divorce that applies to everyone and while most Islamic countries, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, have banned triple talaq, it has persisted among Indian Muslims.