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Triple Talaq – Read about the petitions, arguments and the judgment

Sambit Nayak
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Triple Talaq – Read about the petitions, arguments and the judgment

On 22nd August, Supreme Court of India delivered a historic verdict declaring Talaq-e-biddat or ‘instant triple talaq’ unconstitutional i.e. the act of pronouncing divorce by a Muslim man by saying (or even electronically sending on messaging platforms) the term ‘talaq’ three times in a go, will no longer be a valid form of divorce in the eyes of law.

A lot of water has flown under the bridge since then. While overwhelmingly it was received as a path breaking decision in the right direction towards achieving the constitutional goal of UCC, some people have openly declared it to be anti-Islamic and they won’t be following this. This topic has been hotly debated in newsrooms, editorials and in the court room of course.  

Let’s look at a brief summary of the PIL, the arguments and the judgment.

The PIL

In October 2016, Justice Anil R Dave and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel while delivering a judgement on Prakash & Others v. Phulavati & Others, observed that Muslim women are subjected to discrimination. There is no safeguard against arbitrary divorce and second marriage by her husband during currency of the first marriage, resulting in denial of dignity and security to her.

They pointed out that the matter needs consideration by the supreme court, as the issue relates not merely to a policy matter but to fundamental rights of women under Articles 14, 15 and 21 and international conventions and covenants.

Hence they directed the court to register a suo motu PIL and put up before the appropriate Bench as per orders of Hon’ble the Chief Justice of India to look at the matter of Triple Talaq, Nikah Halala and polygamy.

Thereafter, one Mrs. Shayara Bano of Allahabad, who was divorced from her husband through triple talaq filed a writ petition under article 32. Article 32 provides remedies when your fundamental rights are violated. It gives you a right to move to SC for the enforcement of the rights conferred under part III – fundamental rights – by constitution of India. In her submission, she wrote:

“This practice of talaq-e-bidat (unilateral triple-talaq) which practically treats women like chattel is neither harmonious with the modern principles of human rights and gender equality, nor an integral part of Islamic faith, according to various noted scholars. Muslim women have been given talaq over Skype, Facebook and even text messages. There is no protection against such arbitrary divorce. Muslim women have their hands tied while the guillotine of divorce dangles, perpetually ready to drop at the whims of their husbands who enjoy undisputed power.”

She also submitted that the legislature has failed to ensure the dignity and equality of women in general and Muslim women in particular especially when it concerns matters of marriage, divorce and succession.

Government stand

In a counter affidavit, Ministry of Law & Justice submitted that the said practice is indeed violative of rights conferred by article 14, 15 and 21. It also submitted that the practice can be challenged against article 13 as it is an established “law” under “Shariat bill” passed in 1937. To quote the ministry,

“Any practice by which women are left socially, financially and emotionally vulnerable or subject to whims and caprice of men is incompatible in letter and sprit with article 14 and 15. Right of a woman to human dignity, social esteem and self worth are imp facets of right to life under article 21. Gender justice is non negotiable and is a constitutional goal.”

The ministry also argued that personal laws can’t supersede fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution.

“The underlying idea behind the preservation of personal laws was the preservation of plurality and diversity among the people of India. The question arises as to whether the preservation of such diverse identities can be the pretext for denying to women the status and gender equality they are entitled to under article 14 & 21.“

The ministry tried to establish that personal law is a “law” by within the meaning of law under article 13 and any such law which is inconsistent with fundamental right is thus void.

The Union of India, who was also a respondent in the petition, via AG Mukul Rohatgi shared same views as Ministry of Law and Justice. “Gender equality, gender equity & a life of dignity and status is an overreaching constitutional goal.” AG Rohtagi also submitted that the practices which are under challenge, namely, triple talaq, nikah halala and polygamy are practices which impact the social status and dignity of Muslim women and render them unequal and vulnerable qua men belonging to their own community; women belonging to other communities and also Muslim women outside India.

Rohatgi raised a very relevant point that article 25 of the Constitution which confer the right to practice, preach and propagate religion are “subject to the provisions of Part III”, which means that it is subject to Articles 14 and 15 which guarantee equality and non-discrimination. In other words, under our secular Constitution, the right to the freedom of religion is subject to and in that sense, subservient to other fundamental rights such as the right to equality, the right to non-discrimination and the right to a life with dignity.

The ‘opposition’

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) having made itself a party to the petition, argued against it. As per AIMPLB, Muslim Personal Law is cultural issue; it is inextricably interwoven with religion of Islam. Thus, it is the issue of freedom of conscience, guaranteed under Article 25 and 26 read with Article 29. 

It tried to establish that personal law is NOT a “law” as defined in article 13 of constitution and hence its validity cannot be tested on a challenge based on Part III of the Constitution.

“The Mohammedan Law is founded on the Holy Qur’an and hadith of the Prophet of Islam and thus it cannot fall within the purview of the expression “laws in force” as mentioned in Article 13 of the Constitution of India”. 

The AIMPLB also argued on why it thinks UCC is not a necessity. As per its submission:

“The whole discourse on Uniform Civil Code is marked with number of illusions. The first illusion is that a common civil code will help the cause of national integration. It is believed that the Hindu Code Bill has unified the Hindu

Personal Law on all the subjects. The question is has the Hindu Code Bill succeeded integrating the Hindu society in real terms. Are they not the caste divisions which still exist and have the caste become extinct in India? Is the untouchability non-existence? Are there no grievances of Dalits of discriminatory treatment? In other words, the perception of uniformity of personal laws has failed to achieve the integration amongst the different sections of the Hindu society.”

Arguing for AIMPLB, senior advocate and former Congress union minister Salman Khurshid also submitted similar arguments. He tried to convince the court that it should just look at the issue at hand i.e. Triple Talaq and not at the broader matter of UCC as such. He started his arguments with establishing that as opposed to common belief, Islamic laws are progressive. He stated that 

“Under Islamic law if the answer to any question, solution to a conflict, or resolution to an issue, is provided for in the Holy Quran – that is the final word and rule of Sharia. When there is no clear guidance in the Quran, theologians must look to the traditions of the Prophet as recorded in the Hadiths. If no guidance is found even there then we must refer to general consensus of opinion or Ijma (which the ulema would arrive at after closely studying the first two). If the resolution is found by Ijma then that too would become a rule of Islamic law. To this extent Islamic law, like any other, is a living and evolving body of law.”

He also opined that triple talaq in theory was unilateral but in practice it is not.

“When the dissolution of the marriage tie proceeds from the husband, it is called talaq. Technically, the power of the husband is unilateral and absolute; but, virtually and in practice, it is restrained within definite bounds by the numerous formulae that are attached to its exercise.”

He went on to argue that it is not for SC to examine the validity of triple talaq as it’s a religious matter.

“It is humbly submitted that it is not the role of the Courts to interpret Muslim Personal Law but rather hold which interpretation is correct.“

He further argued that rate of talaq among Muslims is not higher than Hindus.

“Furthermore, no reliable data is forthcoming to show that talaq/triple talaq amongst Muslims exceeds divorce amongst other communities.”

Also representing for AIMPLB, senior advocate and former Congress union minister Kapil Sibal argued on why personal laws can not be challenged under article 13. 

“Personal law represents matters of faith continued for centuries having a direct relationship to the faith of the community representing a religious denomination. It is clear that ‘personal laws’ are not subject to challenge under Part III of the Constitution. Apropos the above, if ‘personal law’ stands excluded from the definition of ‘law in force’ in Article 13 then all matters of faith having a direct relationship to a religious denomination being matters of personal law cannot be tested on the anvil of Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution of India.”

He also argued that all faiths are patriarchal and reform must come from within. 

“Societies of different faiths are essentially patriarchal. This is true of all faiths, Hindus, Christian, Islam, Parsi, Zoroaster, Buddhist etc. There are very few exceptions to this. Reform through codification of such faith binds all individuals within the community. This process is evolutionary.”

Finally, he submitted that court should not interfere in the matters of faith.

The verdict

After hearing all the arguments, the court declared triple talaq to be unconstitutional by a split verdict of 3:2. CJI Justice Khehar and Justice Abdul Nazeer held this to be a matter of faith and religion guaranteed under article 25 and hence court doesn’t have jurisdiction over it.

“We have arrived at the conclusion, that ‘talaq-e-biddat’, is a matter of ‘personal law’ of Sunni Muslims, belonging to the Hanafi school. It constitutes a matter of their faith. It has been practiced by them, for at least 1400 years. We have examined whether the practice satisfies the constraints provided for under Article 25 of the Constitution, and have arrived at the conclusion, that it does not breach any of them. We have also come to the conclusion, that the practice being a component of ‘personal law’, has the protection of Article 25 of the Constitution”

However, Justice Kurian didn’t agree with CJI and didn’t think it is part of Islam religion and hence it can’t be argued under article 25. Therefore, court has the right to declare this unconstitutional.

“I find it extremely difficult to agree with the learned Chief Justice that the practice of triple talaq has to be considered integral to the religious denomination in question and that the same is part of their personal law.

Merely because a practice has continued for long, that by itself cannot make it valid if it has been expressly declared to be impermissible. What is held to be bad in the Holy Quran cannot be good in Shariat and, in that sense, what is bad in theology is bad in law as well.”

Justice Nariman and Justice Uday Lalit had a different view although they agreed with Justice Kurian on the unconstitutionality of triple talaq. However, as per them, it’s not unconstitutional because it’s not part of Islam, but it’s unconstitutional because it’s violative of fundamental right under article 14,15 and 21, being part of Islam or not notwithstanding.

“This being the case, it is clear that this form of Talaq is manifestly arbitrary in the sense that the marital tie can be broken capriciously and whimsically by a Muslim man without any attempt at reconciliation so as to save it. This form of Talaq must, therefore, be held to be violative of the fundamental right contained under Article 14 of the Constitution of India. In our opinion, therefore, the 1937 Act, insofar as it seeks to recognize and enforce Triple Talaq, is within the meaning of the expression “laws in force” in Article 13(1) and must be struck down as being void to the extent that it recognizes and enforces Triple Talaq.”

Although the the practice of instant triple talaq has been outlawed via this verdict, the practice of Nikah Halala and polygamy continues to be legal in India.

Is “Panchkula model” of shooting stone-pelters dead the solution to Kashmir?

Abhishek Banerjee
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Is “Panchkula model” of shooting stone-pelters dead the solution to Kashmir?

On Friday, as soon as the news of Ram Rahim being convicted began to spread, followers of Dera Sacha Sauda took to the streets of Haryana resorting to rampant lawlessness, destruction of property and arson (as also in Punjab, which went relatively unreported for mysterious reasons).

Further, as news of the developing crisis in Haryana’s Panchkula town began to spread, a number of highly secular and eminent liberals began baying for blood. Number 1 among them is of course Former J & K CM Shri Omar Abdullah who had this to say:

Omar hypocrisy

There were several others who appeared to mirror these views : among them Nidhi Razdan, Congress leader Pawan Khera, controversial journalist Barkha Dutt, etc.

hypocrisy

hypocrisy

hypocrisy

It should be noted that the above are merely representative examples. A larger collection of this bloodsoaked whataboutery of the secular brigade may be found here. Here is another glimpse of the bloodthirst from a CNN News 18 journalist :

Islamist booldthirst

But the administration in Haryana did not pamper the goons with pellet guns and chilly grenades or whatever. Instead, it seems CNN News 18 journalist Mufti Islah got the 30 dead bodies and 100s of injured that he was salivating for.

panchkula model

Congratulations Mufti yaar! Party to banti hai, right?

Here is the approach that Haryana Government took towards stone pelters (Warning : Graphic … may be very disturbing)


If you look closely, you might notice that it is not a pepper bomb. It is a shot that strikes the stone pelter dead.

You might also notice that peace has been established in Panchkula town since yesterday. No fresh violence, no fresh shoot-at-sight by the law enforcement agencies.

The secular brigade was peddling a fake victimhood narrative about the Indian state giving preferential treatment to Sikh and Hindu mobs. However, facts establish beyond all doubt that the Indian state acted harshly in defense of law and order. Much more harshly than anything we have seen in Jammu and Kashmir.

Liberals got much more than they asked for : it wasn’t pellet guns, but real guns that were turned on the Ram Rahim’s supporters.

Now that liberals have got their 30 dead bodies, may I ask a question?

In every tragedy, there is an opportunity to learn and plan better for the future. Hasn’t the “Panchkula model” shown that taking firm and lethal action against unruly mobs can swiftly bring an end to violence?

Shouldn’t we be trying this in Kashmir?

After all, the violence in Panchkula lasted barely for a few hours. Because stone-pelters were shot dead, wherever they stand.

So the next time there is stone pelting in Kashmir, perhaps the Army should just take aim and fire straight at the goons with real guns. Who knows, maybe that way peace can return to Kashmir in a couple of hours?

And I am sure everyone wants that.

Imagine the amount of men, material and resources we have pumped into trying and solving the Kashmir problem! Imagine! Perhaps all this time the real solution was right in front of us : Army & Police shooting stone pelters in the head.

After decades of violence, the “Panchkula model” might have come as a ray of hope for Kashmir. It’s worth a try at least, is it not?

Congress leader spreads fake stories implying Dera chief used Adani chopper after conviction in rape case

OpIndia Staff
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Congress leader spreads fake stories implying Dera chief used Adani chopper after conviction in rape case

A Congress leader called Salman Nizami on Saturday tweeted photographs of AgustaWestland choppers AW139 series, one which had Prime Minister Narendra Modi getting off and other had the Dera Sauda Sacha chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim, who was yesterday pronounced guilty in a 2002 rape case, sitting inside.

Nizami claimed that Dera chief used Adani’s chopper to be airlifted from Panchkula to Rohtak.


The Congress leader provided no details about his source of information, which most probably was a WhatsApp forward meant for political propaganda.

He was immediately called out for spreading misinformation.


Other users also tried correcting him for the misinformation.


While others even ridiculed him for the same.


While others reminded them of the AgustaWestland scam Congress leaders are accused of being involved in.


And then someone even compared him to Dera chief’s fans who ran a rampage in Haryana and Punjab yesterday after the verdict.


And then, Twitter doesn’t forget. Nizami also got a lesson in history.


Guess it is a good idea to have a quick fact check before posting things on Twitter.

Why Arvind Kejriwal is afraid of taking action against Satyendar Jain? Kapil Mishra writes

Kapil Mishra
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Why Arvind Kejriwal is afraid of taking action against Satyendar Jain? Kapil Mishra writes

The CBI has filed an FIR on Satyendra Jain and his Dharam Patni Poonam Jain for disproportionate income and money laundering. Preliminary enquiry by CBI has found that Satyendra Jain is running a network of shell companies and was using hawala money for purchasing land and was also changing government policies to ensure an increase in the price of land purchased by him.

Today, everyone in Delhi political and media circles knows that its an open and shut case of public corruption and sooner or later Satyendra and his wife will be arrested and jailed. Being an IRS officer, Kejriwal understands the seriousness of the crime more than anyone.

All the documents related to his black money, documents of how he was converting black money into white through Kolkata based hawala operators, documents of all shell companies owned by him and his wife and papers of benami land deals done by Satyendar Jain and how land policy was changed for those specific areas, everything is in public domain already.

Every single officer in Delhi Sachivalay knows that it’s just a matter of time. When people reporting to you know that you are corrupt and will soon be in jail, there is a complete loss of credibility. Today, this is what Delhi Governance is suffering from.

Remember, last year, when Kejriwal asked cabinet minister Aseem Ahmed Khan to quit because there was an audio clip in which khan was allegedly seeking money for work? Kejriwal handed over the case to CBI for further investigation and asked Khan to quit till he comes clean in investigation.

Things have totally changed since then. This time the CBI has completed a preliminary enquiry, found evidences, have done cross examination with various witnesses and only after being sure of all facts and evidences, CBI has gone ahead and filed FIRs against “The Jains”.

But Satyendra Jain is not Aseem Ahmed Khan. Rules of the game have changed. In fact, it’s a new game altogether that Kejriwal is playing. And in this new game, Satyendra Jain is indispensable for Kejriwal.

Why can’t Kejriwal ask Jain to resign till he comes out clean in investigation?

Simply because Kejriwal is too deeply involved in the crimes done by Satyendra Jain. His close relatives were directly benefitted by Jain, who illegally modified government policies and broken series of tender laws and processes after getting approval from Kejriwal the CM.

From transport to land, health to PWD, he was literally bringing the entire city government to halt due to his ever changing policies and arrogantly flouting all the processes and procedures. Fake bills were provided by saadhu (brother in law) of Arvind Kejriwal, Surender Bansal to PWD, the ministry headed by Jain. As of now, ACB is enquiring into bills worth Rs. 10 crores where no work was carried out. All this took place not only in consultation but with approval from the Dehil CM.

There are so many instances when officers were angrily summoned by the Delhi CM if they objected to any illegal order by Satyendar Jain. Taking away Transport Ministry from Gopal Rai or Urban Development from Manish Sisodia are examples of what was happening when someone was hesitant to follow Jain’s instructions. No one is indispensable except Satyendra Jain.

Kejriwal knows that Jain will soon be arrested but he can’t afford to make Jain upset even now. Jain knows everything, he has all the details. Jain knows real Arvind Kejriwal better than anyone including his wife, Sunita Kejriwal.

Why is Kejriwal silent? Because he just knows his time is up. Once Jain and his wife are arrested, they will tell more than what even enemies of Kejriwal can believe.

(Kapil Mishra is an MLA of Delhi Assembly and a rebel AAP leader. He was a minister in Delhi cabinet headed by Arvind Kejriwal, but was removed from the party and post after he levied corruption charges against Satyendra Jain and subsequently Arvind Kejriwal. The views expressed by the author are his own.)

Lapses on Haryana govt’s part aggrieved the post Gurmeet Ram Rahim verdict violence

OpIndia Staff
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Lapses on Haryana govt’s part aggrieved the post Gurmeet Ram Rahim verdict violence

On Friday self styled “godman” Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Insan was convicted by a special court of the CBI in Panchkula for raping and sexually exploiting two of his disciples in 2002. Soon after the verdict, the angry followers of Gurmeet Ram Rahim including those who were present in large numbers outside the courts, went on a rampage.

Within moments the streets of Panchkula were turned into a virtual warzone with the followers vandalising public property which included setting a petrol pump ablaze, vandalising vehicles with sticks and stones, beating up journalists and even even vandalising a 5 star hotel. The violence was not restricted to Haryana. Reports also claimed that railway stations in Malout and Balluanna in Punjab were partially burned down, a power station in Mansa Punjab was attacked. Violence was even reported in Delhi with the mob setting ablaze two empty rakes of Rewa Express at Anand Vihar railway station.

The security forces as a result started to strongly deal with the adverse situation. After initially watching helplessly, they stepped up their action by first using tear gas shells, pellet guns and finally even taking the help of real guns and ammunition. Reportedly as a result of the whole confrontation, at-least 31 people were killed (29 in Panchkula and 2 in Sirsa) and 350 had sustained injuries. Reports also claimed that about 500 warring followers have been detained by the police. The Punjab police too cracked down on the mobs and a curfew was imposed in 10 districts of the state’s Malwa region.

Incidentally such a huge spurt of violence was surprising considering there were various reports which indicated that the Punjab and Haryana state governments were aware of a possible law and order situation arising after the verdict. According to reports, Punjab and Haryana were placed on high alert from Wednesday itself and prohibitory orders were also issued. Elaborate security measures were also implemented in sensitive areas with 5000 police persons reportedly being deployed at sensitive and vulnerable points for maintaining peace. To name a few more preparations, apart from the police, even the paramilitary forces were deployed in Punjab and Haryana, 1000 police persons who were used to protect VIPs were recalled and even leaves were cancelled.

So questions might be raised as to why and how did the violence assume such a scale when the security personnel were so thoroughly alert. Now certain reports are claiming that even after all the preparations, there indeed were administrative lapses which allowed the followers to wreck havoc. The Haryana administration reportedly watched the crowd swell during the buildup to the verdict and later couldn’t control the whopping 2 lakh supporters who had swamped Panchkula.

Reports even claimed that Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had admitted to the lapses and asserted that appropriate steps were being taken. According to him, the size of the mob created the problem. He also reiterated that amount to compensate for the loss of property would be recovered from the property of Dera Sacha Sauda. He also claimed that criminals had infiltrated the crowd but had no answer when asked as to how did so many followers reach Panchkula even though section 144 was imposed. Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh whose state too witnessed large scale violence, didn’t pull back from questioning as to why did the Haryana government not stop the followers from congregating in one place.

Questions now might also be raised as to could the 31 odd deaths have been prevented had the government been successful in preventing the heavy violence and as to why did such lapses take place even after such elaborate preventive steps were undertaken.

CBI files FIR against Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain in money laundering case, searches residence

OpIndia Staff
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CBI files FIR against Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain in money laundering case, searches residence

In the ongoing money laundering case against Aam Aadmi Party’s Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain, the CBI on Friday filed an FIR against him and reached his residence for search.


He has long been embroiled in a hawala case. In January he had received an IT notice from an Additional Commissioner based in Delhi regarding this matter. The CBI too had registered a preliminary inquiry against Satyendra Jain in April.

Reacting to that, AAP rebel MLA Kapil Mishra tweeted it is matter of time before Jain is jailed.


Earlier, Mishra had also alleged that Jain gave Rs. 2 crore to Arvind Kejriwal in cash at latter’s residence. Mishra has also alleged that Jain had “settled” a Rs. 50 crore land deal for Arvind Kejriwal’s brother in law.

Aam Aadmi Party, in its defence tweeted a July 2017 note calling the CBI a caged parrot.


Aam Aadmi Party claims the allegations are false and the CBI is misused to “intimidate Aam Aadmi Party leaders into silence.”

Aam Aadmi Party machinery immediately got working to show how this is a political vendetta against the only politicians who work.


The above tweet was retweeted by AAP supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who spent most of 2016 spreading lies.


At least they’re toeing the line.


Watch this space for more updates on the case.

Ram Rahim Verdict: how some indulged in whataboutery while people died

Nirwa Mehta
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Ram Rahim Verdict: how some indulged in whataboutery while people died

Earlier today, Panchkula’s special CBI court held Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh guilty of rape in 2002 case filed against him by two ‘sadhvis’.


Following the verdict, Dera followers took to violence in Haryana and as per initial reports 17 protestors were killed in police firing whereas over 200 were injured. Even more were detained in an attempt to contain violence.


Even as the Khattar Government struggles to maintain law and order in the state, the so called liberals had come up with their own suggestions on how to tackle the sensitive situation on hand.


Nidhi here is an NDTV journalist and Omar Abdullah is the former chief minister of Jammu & Kashmir. They are referring to pellet guns used by police in Kashmir to control stone-pelting separatist crowd in Kashmir.

They are conveniently forgetting to mention that rather than pellet guns, the police in Haryana is using actual guns, where as many as 28 (as per latest count as this report gets published) people have been killed and over 200 are injured.

A bit insensitive whataboutery?

When the death toll mounted, Abdullah realised the thoughtlessness of his tweet and repeated the tweet so as to suggest non-lethal pellet guns to control the crowd.


However, by then Congress leaders had chimed in too.


Where journalists were quick to exude their bigotry.


But that is not the only whataboutery that happened today. Many were asking what if the religious head accused (before being pronounced guilty) was a Muslim cleric?


Bainjal aka Swati Chaturvedi is best known on social media for spreading lies and hurling abuses at people who don’t agree with her.


And of course, comparison of Dera followers to JNU students who had allegedly raised “Bharat tere tukde honge, inshaallah-inshaallah” slogans in February, 2016 while protesting hanging of the terrorist, Afzal Guru.


And then, can cows be far behind?


BUT WAIT, that’s not it. Some so called journalists also took it upon themselves to fear mongering. Why should mobs have all the fun?

After  being called out on spreading rumours and fear, Faye decided to delete this tweet. Whatever happened to responsible journalism?

However, better sense prevailed over Omar Abdullah, who, after realising the gravity of the tweet, withdrew it unconditionally.


Perhaps expecting a little bit of sensitivity and restrain by the journalists in reporting delicate situations is asking for too much.

Mamata imposes restrictions on Durga Puja to make way for Muharram, Liberals blame her “bad luck”

Abhishek Banerjee
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Mamata imposes restrictions on Durga Puja to make way for Muharram, Liberals blame her “bad luck”

She did it last year. And now she has done it again. Mamata Banerjee has gone ahead and decreed that there will be no idol immersion after 6 pm on Dashami day to make way for the observance of Muharram.

Mamata bans Duraga Puja immersions

Now, Mamata Banerjee going out of her way to appease Muslims is hardly a surprise. But what stands out about this decision is the brazenness with which Mamata Banerjee is defying all semblance of institutions, including the judiciary.

The TMC government had passed a similar order back in 2016 over Durga idol immersions. This order was not only flayed by Kolkata High Court, the language used by the court was quite extraordinary in that it specifically castigated the West Bengal government for “appeasing Muslims”.

Let us read here the words of the judge, which shows just how furious the court was with Mamata’s order last year.

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Clear endeavor on part of the state government to appease the minority at the cost of the majority! Governments should not take decisions that pit one community against another! Irresponsibly brazen state government has infringed on fundamental rights of people worshipping Maa Durga!

These are not my words; these are the words of the Kolkata High Court!

The injustice that Mamata Banerjee is doing to the Hindus of Bengal is so obvious and so extreme that it seems even left wing anti-Hindu media could not find the words to defend her.

But not having the heart to condemn Mamata Banerjee for her actions, some in the media chose to blame “bad luck”! Yes, you read that right.

Untitled

Oh Mamata Didi, you poor dear. You and your bad luck! Now they are going to create a grudge against you for doing what would have been “normal in other times in West Bengal” and postponing the immersions for a day to allow Muharram processions.

Apparently, the Firstpost journalist who wrote this was not informed (obviously) about what was “normal” at other times in West Bengal. Clearly, the journalist who “reported” on this story  did not care to read the words of the court from last year (again, obviously):

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*Facepalm*

I guess it was just the “bad luck” of the secular journalist that what she wrote was blatantly false.

I guess in “normal times”, secular media would have required that journalists reporting on a story actually be informed about it … or take 2 minutes to at least google the thing before shooting their mouths off on it.

And so did the “poor Mamata” trope continue to spread, with much hand wringing about Mamata’s bad luck giving big bad BJP another issue to capitalize on!

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They don’t give a damn about the actual injustice. Their only care in the world is that BJP might benefit from it. Not for the first time though.

So what is Mamata thinking? It is doubtful that her decision will hold up in court this year, considering just how furious the court was in 2016.

One possible explanation is that with this public announcement, Mamata hopes to give a signal to her core constituency that Hindus will be systematically humiliated and subjugated under her reign. Due to recent events, the Islamic patriarchy has been feeling weak and needed an ego boost. Prominent Trinamool Ministers have refused to accept the authority of the Supreme Court in the triple talaq judgement and on the ground, the petitioner Ishrat Jahan, who lives in Bengal, is being harassed by the insecure and sore losers.

In the coming days, whether Hindus in Bengal are able to stand up for their rights and for the rights of Muslim women remains to be seen.

In Mamata’s Bengal, triple talaq petitioner faces social boycott

OpIndia Staff
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In Mamata’s Bengal, triple talaq petitioner faces social boycott

Ishrat Jahan, one of the five petitioners in the landmark Supreme Court verdict which pronounced instant triple talaq invalid, is facing social boycott and character assassination back home in Howrah, West Bengal. Jahan has been allegedly facing social boycott and insinuations and is being ostracised by her in-laws and neighbours in Howrah’s Pilkhana.

30 year old Jahan’s husband divorced her in 2015 over the phone from Dubai and allegedly took away her 4 children. In her fight for social justice, she has faced financial losses and now she has to face abuses as she is called “dirty woman”, “enemy of men” and “anti-Islam”.

The Supreme Court verdict seems to have opened floodgates of abuses for Jahan as her in-laws and neighbours have stopped talking to her even as she faces insults.

Ishrat lives in Howrah’s Pilkhana in West Bengal in a house her husband purchased from the dowry she had brought in 2004. Her husband’s elder brother and his family also live there. Jahan now feels unsafe staying in the house and says after such a long battle she does not have strength to fight them anymore.

She has since removed the naqab and shown her face to the world. “I realised that I am not a victim anymore. I want other women to see me and understand that if an ordinary woman like me can fight for her rights, so can they,” said Jahan, reported Times of India explaining the reason why she decide to remove her naqab.

Jahan adds that just a court verdict will not change anything unless the society and community brings about a change where people help a vulnerable and helpless victim instead of assassinating her character. She says instead of coming out in support of her, people have mocked and ridiculed her for standing up for justice.

This is indeed true, since even TMC Minister has vocally opposed the Supreme Court verdict and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has held an uncomfortable silence on the verdict.

Prashant Bhushan shares unverified image with wrong information to score a political point

OpIndia Staff
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Prashant Bhushan shares unverified image with wrong information to score a political point

Politician and lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who used to be part of the AAP before Arvind Kejriwal removed him from the party, today posted a sensational “news report”, which appeared to be printed on the front page of some newspaper.

Using the picture of that article, Prashant Bhushan then attacked Modi and his “Bhakts” for being selective in their approach:


Bhushan made the above claim based on an article from a certain “Dainik Ujala” newspaper. The headline meant “the biggest scam in the country” and claimed that Reliance Jio had betrayed India by buying 30 crore phones from China. It also accused Reliance Jio of committing tax fraud, though did not explain the rationale.

The content, in Hindi, did not read like a proper news report and more like a WhatsApp forward created by a political party. It claimed that Jio had ordered the cheap phones from China, even though there is a ‘Make In India’ program in prevalence.

The ‘report’ further claimed that Jio did so even after knowing that had it made the handsets in India, lakhs of unemployed people could have got work. It then stated that at a time when the Indian army is ready to give a befitting reply to the enemy (China), our company was giving a Rs 45,000 crore business to China. It then claimed that such phone were a security concern for India and also put a comparative analysis about India’s losses and China’s gains due to Jio’s move.

The so-called newspaper report however is not factually correct. It should be noted that the Jio phones are not being manufactured in China. They are being manufactured in Taiwan, which incidentally has a long standing conflict with China. So if at all Jio is funding someone, its funding China’s enemies.

It can be argued that Reliance could indeed have done better by manufacturing in India, but a private company can not be forced to take business decisions. Nonetheless, the rhetoric vis a vis China is factually wrong.

Apart from that, the newspaper that is supposed to have published this ‘report’ shared by Bhushan appears non-existent or fictitious. Details about any newspaper called “Dainik Ujala” are sketchy. This supposed newspaper hardly has any information about it available online. Even its website (www.dainikujaala.com — as mentioned in the image shared by Bhushan) doesn’t exist. In fact, the domain was available for sale when we checked:

Prashant Bhushan shares fake image
Domain search undertaken at 5.00 PM IST on 24th August 2017

Assuming that a newspaper got its own website URL wrong, we found that the closest matching URL is danikujala.com, which hosts a ‘web news channel’ (as per its own definition) but it neither has a print version nor has its website got that particular Jio report online.

So not only did Prashant Bhushan share a ‘news report’ that made wrong claims, the newspaper which carried it too appears to be fake. A lawyer of Supreme Court is expected to have this much of awareness and common sense to ascertain if a piece of information he is sharing is reliable and authentic. Is this the kind of ‘proof’ he relies upon when fighting cases?

It also remains to be seen if Reliance Jio takes some action against him for spreading information, which might even be considered slanderous.

Prashant Bhushan is somewhat of a habitual offender when it comes to creating controversy on Social Media. A couple of months back, he had blamed the “culture of Hindutva” and anti-romeo squads for a gruesome molestation case, even though it was well established that the crime was committed by Muslim youths.

Bhushan has also gone to great lengths to somehow link Narendra Modi with a ‘scam’, especially involving big corporate houses. He had famously spearheaded the whole case about Modi allegedly taking bribes from Sahara and Birla, but the ‘proof’ he submitted were thrown out by the Supreme Court, with apex court nothing that anyone could create such proofs. Perhaps just like anyone can create such newspaper clippings.

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