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Updated: Aug 19, 2019 00:19 IST

Union home minister Amit Shah said on Sunday politics of appeasement, which led to the Partition in 1947, was the reason behind the continuance of the “evil practice” of triple talaq in the country for decades even after many Muslim countries banned it.

Speaking at an event organised by the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Research Foundation (SPMRF) in Delhi, Shah said, “Some people level allegations against BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] government that such action [banning triple talaq] is anti-Muslim. I want to make it clear that this is only and only to benefit Muslims.”

Shah said effective law was necessary as people there were instances of triple talaq even after the Supreme Court had declared it be unconstitutional and even un-Islamic. The legislation to criminalise instant triple talaq was passed by Parliament in the last session.

The practice was a “nightmare” for millions of Muslim women, Shah said. Even those who opposed the law, knew inside their hearts that it was a wrong practice and should go, he added.

For reasons as frivolous as that a chapati got burnt or someone had gained weight, triple talaq was pronounced, the home minister said. Coming down heavily on the Congress, he said the party has “no shame” and continues to oppose the law on triple talaq.

Referring to the Rajiv Gandhi government’s decision to bring a law to overturn the Supreme Court judgment in the Shah Bano case, he said it would be considered a “black day” in the history of Parliament.

The Shah Bano case refers to a 1985 verdict by the Supreme Court that awarded maintenance to a middle-aged divorced Muslim woman named Shah Bano. The judgment was later overturned by the Congress administration, allegedly under pressure from the Muslim clergy, by bringing a new law.

The politics of appeasement has been a hurdle in the path to achieve development and social harmony in the country. “When your intention is social uplift, you have to work hard for it, you have to plan for it,” he said.

“The election of Narendra Modi as Prime Minister in 2014 was the beginning of the end of politics of appeasement and the 2019 mandate is to end it forever,” said Shah, who is also the BJP president.

Shah said the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government did not function on the basis of casteism, dynastic politics and appeasement. “We believe that everyone should get equal opportunity on the basis of talents,” he said.

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