Hitting out at chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan for criticising the law prohibiting triple talaq, Kerala governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Thursday said that the practice is not even mentioned in the Quran, the central religious text of Islam.
Khan’s reaction came days after the chief minister slammed the Centre for bringing The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019, questioning why the practice of instant divorce among Muslims was “criminalised when divorces happen in all religions”.
Speaking to ANI, Khan said: “Whatever CM said is his own opinion. But Triple talaq is no more an issue, the law was implemented in 2019. Divorce rates have come down by more than 90 percent. A lot of women and children’s future have become secure. If somebody has a problem with it, what can I do?”
“Divorce is everywhere, even among Muslims. But triple talaq is mentioned nowhere and there is no mention of triple talaq in the Quran. So when legislation was made about Triple Talaq, a provision was made for giving 40 lashes to the person. Since then it has been considered a criminal matter. But nowadays you cannot give 40 lashes, so there is a provision for jail,” he said.
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In 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government enacted the law making instant triple talaq a criminal offense. Under the law, the practice of instant divorce by Muslim men is punishable by a jail term of up to three years.
Vijayan had questioned the law against triple talaq and said why triple talaq has been brought under the purview of the law only for Muslims and has been brought under the category of crime.
The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was also criticised by the chief minister, who stated that the law would not be implemented in the southern state “at any cost.” Khan, however, supported CAA and asserted that nobody can stop the nation’s law from getting implemented.
