Lucknow :
Uttar Pradesh Minority Affairs Minister Mohsin Raza on Tuesday said All India MuslimPersonal Law Board's views on triple talaq are against the Constitution and the body should be called "Maulawi (Cleric)Personal law Board."
He also said "restrictions" should be imposed on such bodies and it should also be "banned".
Asked to comment on triple talaq issue, the minister said, "Exploitation of women is being done and they (AIMPLB)are giving views (on triple talaq) that are against the Constitution."
"In the Quran, it is written that you should not go for namaz under the influence of liquor and if anyone gives talaq under its influence, can it be considered valid?" Raza asked.
"For namaz, Allah is stopping (from drinking liquor) and for talaq, maulwis are saying it is okay. They have to correct themselves and garner knowledge in this regard. In my view, it is an atrocity on women and such things are not permitted by Islam...," he said.
"In my view, AIMPLB should be called Maulawi (Cleric)Personal Law Board. Restrictions should be imposed on such organisations and it should also be banned as it is not working for social welfare," the minister said.
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Supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar PradeshChief Minister Yogi Adityanath's stand on the triple talaq issue, Raza said a new law should be implemented "to put an end" to the age-old practice.
Modi's pitch against 'triple talaq' has added fuel to the contentious debate on the Muslim divorce practice. Adityanathyesterday had said those silent on the issue were as "guilty" as the ones practising it.
Reacting to Raza's assertion, a member of AIMPLB, MaulanaKhalid Rashid Firangi Mahali, said the Muslim Personal LawBoard is a registered organisation and political leaders are making a political issue out of triple talaq.
"Nothing Islamic or religious is being said or done on the issue of triple talaq... It has been made a political issue and will continue. Muslim Personal Law Board is a registered organisation under the Societies Act," Mahali said.
A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court will start hearing from May 11 petitions filed by several Muslim women against triple talaq, the practice under which men can divorce their wives by uttering the word 'talaq' thrice.
