Senior lawyer Indira Jaising today questioned the government's intent in refusing to bring a law to ban instant triple talaq.
Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had last week ruled out the need for a law on the controversial practice after a five-judge bench of the apex court set aside triple talaq by a majority of 3:2.
"The then Attorney General had been saying in court that the government will bring a law once the court gives its decision on triple talaq, but now that there is a decision, the same government says there is no need to frame a law. Why? This is a question to ponder about," said Jaising, who had argued against the triple talaq in the top court on behalf of women's group Bebak Collective.
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The refusal to legislate on the matter seems like a "political statement", she said at an event here.
The law minister had told reporters on the day of the judgment that a prima facie reading of the judgment made it clear that the majority (of the five-member bench) held instant triple talaq or talaq-e-bidat "illegal".
Questions about the need for a new law arose after Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice S A Abdul Nazeer favoured keeping on hold the practice of talaq-e-bidat for six months saying that the court could not tinker with personal law and any change could be made only through parliamentary legislation.
However, this was a minority opinion. The majority judgments set aside the practice of triple talaq. These were written by Justice Rohinton F Nariman for himself and Justice U U Lalit and Justice Kurian Joseph wrote a concurring judgment.
The senior advocate also said that the different judgments will have wide ramifications and it remained to be seen how these will impact matters where women's rights "are pitted against religious tenets" such as the case in the SC on right to entry for women in Sabarimala temple.
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