Triple talaq back in focus as India prepares for a new government

Photo: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Amit Shah, greet each other before releasing their party's election manifesto for the April/May general election in New Delhi, India, April 8, 2019. The BJP has pledged to eliminate the practices of triple talaq and nikah halala, if re-elected. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

As the issue of instant triple talaq has become a hot topic for political debates in India, with both ruling and opposition parties trying to gain political mileage from it, women activists say the issue of gender justice has taken a backseat.

“At present, politics has taken centre stage; justice for women can wait, unfortunately,” said Zakia Soman, founder of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, a social organisation that was one of the petitioners in the triple talaq case in the Supreme Court.

Political parties are divided on the issue of instant triple talaq, with the BJP-ruled incumbent government pushing to enact a law with a provision for jail terms of up to three years for offenders.