The Upper House passed the bill by 99 votes in favour and 84 against it.
Parliament today passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019. The upper house earlier rejected the motion to send the contentious triple talaq bill - that makes instant triple talaq a criminal offence - to select committee for further scrutiny. The passage of the bill was supported by a non-aligned Biju Janata Dal, while National Democratic Alliance members Janata Dal United and the AIADMK walked out.
The Upper House passed the bill by 99 votes in favour and 84 against it.
The bill to ban Triple Talaq - the practice of Muslim men instantly divorcing their wives by uttering "talaq" thrice - which failed the the Rajya Sabha test last time, was passed by Lok Sabha last week. The Triple Talaq bill could not make it through the Upper House earlier this year during the first term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, although it was passed by Lok Sabha.
With Rajya Sabha now approving the bill, the practice of instant divorce by Muslim men will be punishable by jail term of up to three years. Once granted assent by the President, the bill will replace an ordinance promulgated last on February 21 to the same effect as the bill.
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the bill is about "gender justice, dignity and equality" as he tabled the bill in Rajya Sabha today. To Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, who termed the bill as a politically motivated move to destroy Muslim households with domestic fights, the minister said the Congress leader should think of why his party could never win majority following the peak of 400-plus seats it won in 1984.
The opposition parties say in its current form, the proposed law could be misused to harass Muslims and wanted it to be reviewed by a parliamentary committee.
Here are the highlights on the Parliament session:
Lok Sabha passes The Code on Wages Bill, 2019
Rajya Sabha passes Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019
Rajya Sabha has rejected the motion to send the contentious Triple Talaq bill to a select panel by 100-84 votes
The JDU walkout is likely to help the government in passage of Triple Talaq bill in 241-member Rajya Sabha, where the majority mark is 121. The JDU, which doesn't support the bill, has seven members in the upper house. The NDA has 113 lawmakers in Rajya Sabha and after the JDU walkout the majority mark to pass the bill is set to slide.
Rajya Sabha adjourned amid uproar over Triple Talaq Bill.
Watch: Congress's Amee Yajnik On Triple Talaq Bill
"Those Supporting Triple Talaq Bill Taking Forward Taliban Ideology: BJP Leader Rakesh Sinha"Sending the Triple Talaq bill to a select committee will be injustice to it and those who are demanding this are taking forward the Taliban's ideology and giving legitimacy to hardliners," BJP lawmaker Rakesh Sinha told NDTV outside parliament.
BJP ally JDU walks out amid opposition against the Triple Talaq Bill tabled in Rajya Sabha this afternoon.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has allotted four hours for discussing the Triple Talaq Bill, news agency PTI reported.
"Those Concerned About Jail Term....": Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi In Rajya Sabha BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, in a comeback to the opposition attack over jail-term in the Triple Talaq Bill, said: "Those concerned about the jail-term should not indulge in such practices. Such a provision is important in the bill."
NCP leader Majid Memon to NDTV on Triple Talaq Bill:"We want that the provision of three-year jail term should be removed in the bill. The bill should be sent to select committee for review."
Last Friday, as many as 17 opposition parties wrote to Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu to express anguish over the "hurried" passage of bills in parliament in this session with little or no scrutiny.
"Triple Talaq Bill talks of women from only one community.... Empower women in the right manner. Give them social and economic empowerment too.": Congress's Amee Yajnik In Rajya Sabha
"Philosophy Behind Law Is Justice": Congress's Amee Yajnik
Congress's Amee Yajnik, raising objections against the Triple Talaq Bill in Rajya Sabha today, said: "The philosophy behind law is justice... there's no point behind a legislation if the end result is not dignity. Under this legislation, a woman will have to sit in the line of accused... Most matters concerning women are in family courts. But under this bill, the women will have to go to a magistrate court."
We have ensured the provision of bail in Triple Talaq bill.... Let's not politicise the matter... This is a matter of gender justice: Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad
Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad tables Triple Talaq bill in Rajya Sabha
Congress, BJP Spar Over Unnao Rape Case In Lok Sabha On Unnao rape case, Congress's Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury told the Lok Sabha: "We demand that Home Minister comes to the House and gives a statement. What kind of a society are we talking about, where such an incident (accident of Unnao rape case survivor in Raebareli) has happened.
Amid uproar, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Pralhad Joshi Pralhad Joshi in Lok Sabha said the matter should "not be politicised".
"CBI inquiry is already underway, FIR has been registered. Government is investigating with impartiality," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
Speaking to NDTV, Trinamool Congress lawmaker Mahua Moitra, outside the parliament, said "Unnao rape case is shameful".
"The BJP lawmaker is in the jail but he is still influencing the case. Yogi Adityanath government is answerable. Sengar's relatives are threatening the family of rape survivor. Is this a government of killers?"
"Save The Daughter Of Unnao": Opposition Raises Slogan In Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha witnessed uproar and sloganeering over the Unnao rape case. The teen who was raped in 2017, allegedly by BJP legislator Kuldeep Sengar, is critical after she met with an accident on Sunday. Two women, the teen's aunts, died in the car crash and her laywer was injured. The opposition raised slogan in the house: "
The Triple Talaq Bill will be tabled after 12 pm, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
The BJP is holding a parliamentary party meeting this morning.
Many opposition parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress and the DMK, have repeatedly questioned the government's motive behind "rushing" the bill through parliament.
The Triple Talaq Bill seeks a three-year jail term for the husband in cases of instant divorce.
The bill faces strong resistance not only from the opposition parties but from some BJP allies like Nitish Kumar and parties like Telangana Rashtra Samithi, which provides issue-based support.
Before the contentious Triple Talaq bill is tabled in the Rajya Sabha, the ruling BJP, which is in a minority in the upper house, issues a whip, and so do the Congress and other opposition parties.