Why single out Muslim women?'

NEW DELHI: The Assam government's plan to provide interim pension and skill training to Muslim

women

who have been divorced through triple talaq has not gone down well with women's organisations. They have protested the singling out of one community for extending the benefit and the fear that this may be politicised at a time when there is a raging debate over the issue.

Calling the Assam government scheme “condemnable“,

Annie Raja

, general secretary of the National Federation for Indian Women, said all divorced women should be treated equally. “No political party should use the plight of women who have faced the trauma of divorce to gain political mileage.“

She is not alone. Zakia Soman of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan said, “The important point is that the hardships of all women who are divorced are equal.So why segregate like this on the basis of triple talaq.“

While commending the initiative, All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) member S Q R Ilyas put in a caveat. “ All welfare schemes and benefits for women in distress must be there but it should not happen that one community is specifically highlighted because of triple talaq.“ He said the board is already building awareness against instant triple talaq and asserted that “cases of divorce by way of triple talaq were not many as was being projected.“ However, AIMPLB member

Kamal Faruqui

who is normally very vocal on the issue chose not to comment claiming the matter was before Supreme Court.

Maimoona Mollah from All India Democratic Women's Association questioned the Assam government's decision to give an interim pen sion. “A divorced woman is a divorced woman so what is the concept of interim here?“ she asked. Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said that the state government will provide pension and skill development to Muslim women who are victims of triple talaq, in a bid to make them self-reliant.

“The skill development training will be imparted to all women divorcees so that they acquire gainful employment. But for Muslim women divorcees, we have proposed special support by providing pension during the training period. This is because unlike other women divorcees , their Muslim counterparts do not get any alimony or support from the former husband,“

Sarma

said.

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