In what can be hailed as a landmark day for the Indian democracy, the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed the contentious Triple Talaq bill, a legislative move that makes instant triple talaq a criminal offence and provides for a jail term to a Muslim man for the crime. The Upper House of the Parliament passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019, by 99 votes in favour and 84 against it.

The Lok Sabha had passed the bill last week and with the Rajya Sabha now approving it, the practice of instant divorce by Muslim men will be punishable by jail term of up to three years.

Cricketer turned politician Gautam Gambhir expressed his happiness and satisfaction over the passing of the bill in the Rajya Sabha and hailed the moment as a red-letter day in India's history.

Gambhir took to social media and expressed his sentiments in the following manner - 


The House had  earlier rejected an opposition sponsored motion to send the bill to a Rajya Sabha Select Committee with 100 votes against it as compared to 84 in favour. While BJD supported the legislation, JD-U and AIADMK walked out, lowering the majority mark which normally stands at 121. The ruling NDA has 107 members in the 242-member Rajya Sabha.

The NDA was also helped by the absence of some members of SP and BSP as well as those of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and YSR-Congress.

The same strategy had helped the government push through the contentious amendment to the Right To Information (RTI) Act last week despite lacking numbers in the Upper House. Once granted assent by the President, the bill will replace an ordinance promulgated last on February 21 to the
same effect as the bill.