INDIA: STATEMENT OF WOMEN’S GROUPS & CONCERNED INDIVIDUALS ON THE SUPREME COURT JUDGEMENT ON TRIPLE TALAQ
22 AUGUST 2017
We wholeheartedly welcome the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the matter of Triple Talaq brought before it by a number of Muslim women and Muslim women’s rights groups. In arguing that the practice of Triple Talaq is both un-Quranic and Un-Constitutional, it is an important departure from earlier judgments on all women’s rights, because it is based on the tenets of equality, dignity and secularism as enshrined in the Constitution.
As women’s groups and as individuals we recognise that the current political climate of communalisation and violence, when the entire Muslim community is under attack in India and much of the Islamophobic world today, makes the fight for minority and gender rights an even more uphill task. Hence we extend our solidarity and salute the courage of the Muslim women who have fought everyday patriarchy within, religious institutions and the family, as well as communal forces to seek justice and equality from the courts.
Even as we celebrate this victory as one that strengthens the fight for secular rights, we are aware that this is but one step in our continued battle against all kinds of patriarchal power and the prevailing political order that seeks to convert this into a majority-minority issue.
In our joint struggles for gender justice in all laws relating to marriage and family, beyond the religious framework, we believe that the Supreme Court judgment on Triple Talaq is an important affirmation of Constitutional values of equality, secularism, pluralism and dignity for all citizens. We hope that this will be the framework in all matters of justice for gender and minority rights.
Signed/-
Hasina Khan, Bebaak Collective, Awaz-e-Niswaan, Mumbai, Saba Khan, Parcham, Mumbai, Parwaaz, Ahmedabad, Sahiyar, Baroda, Janvikas, Ahmedabad, Hameeda, Sadbhavna Trust, UP, Shabina, Vanangana, UP, Muslim Mahila Manch, Nagpur, Sandhya Gokhale, Forum against Oppression of Women, Mumbai, Chayanika Shah, Labia – A Queer Feminist LBT Collective, Mumbai, Vani Subramanian, Saheli Women’s Resource Centre, New Delhi, Renu Mishra, Association For Advocacy and Legal Initiatives, Lucknow, Kavita Srivastav, Peoples’ Union for Civil Liberties, Jaipur, Rehana Adib, Astitva, UP, Razia Patel, Indian Institute of Minority Education, Pune, Meena Seshu, SANGRAM/Nazariya, Sangli, Maharashtra, Swati Sanyal, Swayam, Kolkata
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