'Let Muslims lie in gutters': PM Modi quotes THIS former Union minister in Lok Sabha address

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged the Congress support the Triple Talaq Bill, saying it can make up for two "missed opportunities" on the issue of women empowerment in the past--once on Uniform Civil Code and the other on Shah Bano judgment. "The Congress has missed two opportunities on the issue of women empowerment. They first missed in 1950s when Uniform Civil Code was being debated and then after 35 years when Shah Bano case came up. Now is the third chance when they can support Triple Talaq Bill.

"What one of the main Congress ministers during Shah bano case said in an interview recently is shocking. He said other Congress ministers remarked that it was not the job of the Congress to reform Muslims, ‘if they want to lie in the gutter let them be’ is what they said,” Modi said in his reply to the debate on the President's address in the Lok Sabha.

BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya later shared the interview on Twitter, saying “Arif Mohammad Khan recalls how P V N Rao, Arjun Singh & N D Tewari were of the opinion that it was not the job of the Congress party to reform Muslims, (they said) ‘if they want to lie in the gutter let them be’.”

The Triple Talaq Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha last week amid a huge uproar from the Opposition parties, which are against criminalising the offence.

The Opposition raised strong objections at the introduction of the Bill itself. After a brief discussion, the motion for tabling the bill was put to vote. As many as 186 members voted for the introduction of the Bill and 74 against.

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