PM Modi asks NDA MPs to reach out to Muslim women, cites triple talaq ban

New Delhi: Asserting that his government's decision to ban triple talaq has boosted overall sense of security for Muslim women, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked BJP leaders to reach out to them during the upcoming festival of Raksha Bandhan.

Sources said Modi made the remarks at a meeting of BJP-led NDA MPs from West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand on Monday night in which he and other senior BJP leaders highlighted various development initiatives of the central government for different sections of society as the alliance gears up for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Some MPs present in the meeting said Modi emphasised the need to connect with every section of society and then noted his government's decision to ban the practice of instant divorce among Muslim men.

The government has criminalised the practice. He said this decision has been a big boost for Muslim women, some MPs present in the meeting said, adding that the prime minister asked them to organise programmes during Raksha Bandhan to reach out to women from the minority community. Rakshan Bandhan festival - a celebration of the bond between brothers and sisters - will fall on August 30 this year.

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill was passed by Parliament in 2019, declaring the practice of instant triple talaq illegal and a crime that could attract a jail term for the husband. Modi has often highlighted his government's reform measures for Muslim women. In his recent 'Mann ki Baat' address, he noted that over 4,000 Muslim women performing Haj this year without 'mehram' was a "huge transformation" and asserted that more and more people were getting the chance to go for the annual pilgrimage with the changes made by his government in the Haj policy over the past few years. In his speech to the MPs, he noted that opposition parties are making efforts to join their forces under a new name INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) as their earlier moniker UPA was tainted with a slew of scams. People will never accept it, he said.

The BJP has divided NDA MPs region-wise into clusters of nearly 40 members and Modi is expected to speak to them separately during the ongoing Monsoon session of Parliament. The first two meetings were held on Monday. He had also addressed a meeting of about 45 NDA MPs from the western part of Uttar Pradesh up to the Kanpur-Bundelkhand region.

Addressing the meeting of Uttar Pradesh MPs, he said the ruling alliance has been serving society and the country and receiving people's blessings. Modi asked MPs to go to the masses with a positive message about the government's work and advised them to spend maximum time reaching out to people. The opposition alliance might have changed its name from UPA to INDIA but it will not be able to wash off its "sins of corruption and misgovernance," he had said.