Triple Talaq Bill Controversy: A day after the voting on the landmark triple talaq legislation exposed a fractured Opposition with abstaining MPs helping the government get the much debated Triple Talaq Bill cleared in Rajya Sabha, the Congress sought to offer a defence and accused the Modi government of keeping the opposition in the dark.
Speaking in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Leader of Opposition in the Upper House Ghulam Nabi Azad alleged manipulation by the government. Azad said the Congress was not informed in time ahead of discussion over the Triple Talaq Bill due to which the party failed to issue whip to its MPs.
“Unfortunately, that bill (triple talaq) was listed at night. My submission is that out of the six bills which we had given on priority to be sent to the Select Committee was the bill which was discussed on Tuesday and passed. We were in the dark we could not inform our members of Parliament. The second bill, which is being considered today for passage, is also on the priority list to be sent to the Select Committee,” Azad said while speaking during Zero Hour in Rajya Sabha.
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The senior Congress leader was supported by Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien who accused the government of pushing through legislations without any scrutiny. “Parliament is supposed to scrutinise bills. This chart explains the bulldozing this Session. Are we delivering pizzas or passing legislation?” O’Brien said in his tweet alongside a chart showing the percentage of bills scrutinised from 2004 to 2019.
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The TMC leader said that only one bill was put to scrutiny out of the 18 passed so far by the present Lok Sabha.
The Triple Talaq Bill or The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, was passed in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. The legislation, which was passed by Lok Sabha last week, got 99 votes in favour and 84 against it. Several Opposition MPs, including those from the Congress, BSP, SP, PDP abstained from voting. While parties like JD-U and AIADMK staged a walk out.