India’s parliament has approved a bill outlawing the centuries-old right of a Muslim man to instantly divorce his wife, drawing accusations of government interference in a community matter.
Indian lawmakers on Tuesday approved a bill to end the Muslim practice of giving triple divorce at a time, two years after the Supreme Court ruled that it violated the constitutional rights of Muslim women.
Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist administration has been pushing to criminalise “triple talaq”, under which a man can divorce by uttering the word “talaq”, meaning divorce in Arabic, three times in his wife’s presence.
The 99-84 approval was a victory for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. The opposition had blocked the bill for more than a year, as the ruling party lacked majority support in the upper house. A split in the opposition ranks helped the government cross the line.
More than 20 countries, including Pakistan and Bangladesh, have banned the practice.
