Amit Shah directs BJP MPs to ensure attendance in Rajya Sabha for triple talaq bill

Pic courtesy: ANI

Ahead of the tabling of triple talaq bill in the Rajya Sabha, Union Home Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Amit Shah has asked all party MPs to ensure their attendance in the Upper House of Parliament on Tuesday.

During the BJP parliamentary party meeting held earlier on Tuesday, Shah said that all party MPs in Rajya Sabha must remain present during division of vote on the triple talaq bill. The BJP faces a number crunch in Rajya Sabha, where the opposition parties are set to oppose the bill of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government.

The opposition parties, including the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, have also directed their MPs to remain present in the House when the triple talaq bill is tabled. Both the Congress and the Trinamool Congress have issued whip to their MPs.

BJP’s ally from Bihar, the Janata Dal United (JDU), has also expressed concerns over the provisions of the triple talaq bill. However, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has declared that it will support the bill in Parliament.

The triple talaq bill, which proposes to criminalise the practice of instant divorce by Muslim men, was passed in the Lok Sabha through voice vote as the BJP-led NDA enjoyed majority on the floor of the House.

Despite the opposition from the opposition, the BJP-led NDA government has maintained that it is a step towards ensuring gender equality and justice. Batting for the bill in the Lok Sabha, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that the bill was not about any religion, but was about ensuring that all citizens of the country get equality. He had also pointed that several Islamic nations had already abolished the practice of triple talaq.

This is the first draft legislation tabled by the Narendra Modi government after it took oath of office for a second term in May.