New Delhi: The Supreme Court ruling striking down the practice of triple talaq on Tuesday has come as a major victory for the BJP-led NDA ahead of elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh in November.
As the Modi government claimed credit, the Congress, with the contentious three-decade-old Shah Bano case hanging like an albatross around its neck, “welcomed” the ruling and went into damage control mode.
Congress spokesman Manish Tewari, in a bid to minimise the damage, told the media that “if a religious practice is contrary to modern times, efforts should be made to eliminate it with the community’s consent”.
The verdict should also help the BJP to make deep inroads into the women’s votebank, particularly those belonging to the minority community.
“The judgment has given the right to crores of women to live with equality and dignity. This marks the beginning of a new era for women who can now live with self-respect,” BJP president Amit Shah said.
For the RSS, “the day of judgment should be celebrated as Islam saved from orthodoxy”.
Legal luminaries too hailed the verdict by terming it as “historic, progressive and path- breaking”. Senior advocate Mahesh Jeth-malani said though the judgement had to be welcomed, it was only limited to triple talaq.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi said, “The judgment is a step towards achieving the ultimate goal of Uniform Civil Code.”
In Mumbai, social activists from the Muslim community described the verdict as “one of the best reforms” after independence.
“I am elated to hear about this historical judgement,” said Zakia Soman, the co-founder of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, which is also one of the petitioners in the case.
