AIADMK walkout helps pass triple talaq bill, exposes party fissures

The AIDMK has both opposed and supported the bill in parliament

A-Navaneethakrishnan-Rajya-Sabha AIADMK Rajya Sabha member A. Navaneethakrishnan speaking against the bill | Rajya Sabha TV

The Triple Talaq bill amidst chaos has been passed in the Rajya Sabha. The AIADMK which supported the bill in the Lok Sabha, strongly opposed it in the Rajya Sabha, saying it should be sent to the select committee. However, the bill saw the light of the day, after all 11 AIADMK members walked out from the Rajya Sabha and abstained from voting, as a mark of protest against the bill.

“It is a shame that the AIAMDK walked out to facilitate the passing of the triple talaq bill in Rajya Sabha,” DMK MP Kanimozhi tweeted. But AIADMK’s stance in opposing and supporting the bill, in Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha respectively, has exposed the party’s double standards on the issue.

In fact, the AIADMK spoke in several voices on the Triple Talaq bill.

Its former MP, party senior Anwar Raajha, opposed the bill saying, “it is undemocratic and unconstitutional. This bill is on a direct collision course with the Muslim personal law.” He spoke against the bill in parliament on December 27, 2018. On July 25, 2019, when the bill came up for discussion in the Lok Sabha, the AIDMK’s lone MP, Raveendranath Kumar, spoke in support of the bill saying, “This amendment bill is a commitment of the Narendra Modi government to give special power to women in society.” Days after his speech, while the AIADMK leadership chose to maintain a silence on the triple talaq bill issue, the party spokesperson and Minister D. Jayakumar in an ad-hoc press conference clarified that “our Amma had taken a clear stand on the bill and we are following that. Though we are in support of women’s equality, she had opposed certain provisions and we stand by that.”

The AIADMK opposed the bill on Tuesday and staged a walkout, as the bill was presented in the Rajya Sabha by Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. The AIADMK Rajya Sabha member A. Navaneethakrishnan, claimed that the parliament has “no legislative competence” to entertain the triple talaq bill. Explaining that marriage under Muslim law is a civil contract and that a breach of contract, divorce, cannot be criminalised he said, “when Supreme Court has decided that instant triple talaq is null and void then it cannot be declared as offence.” Navaneethakrishnan demanded that the bill be sent to the select committee.

The discussions, AIADMK’s U-turn, and the subsequent walkout have all exposed the fissures within the party. Sources say that Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisamy was upset with Raveendranath’s statement in the Lok Sabha. In fact, just hours before getting into the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, AIADMK members including Navaneethakrishnan were clueless as to what their point of argument on the bill should be. The members did not get any instructions from both their party leaders — Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) and O. Panneerselvam (OPS). According to a source, they later chose to oppose the bill, but not vehemently.

In fact, out of the 29 members in Rajya Sabha who abstained from voting on the triple talaq bill, AIADMK numbered 11, a big number compared to the other parties which opposed the bill.

With Vellore elections round the corner, sources say that Raveendranath’s comments would take a toll on the big chunk of Muslim votes. There are around 1.5 lakh Muslim voters in the Vellore parliamentary constituency. “In the Lok Sabha we do not have the numbers. But our lone MP does not stick to the party’s stance in most issues. We all thought he would oppose the dam safety bill strongly. But when the dam safety bill was introduced in the parliament on Monday, Raveendranath did not speak. The DMK opposed it. Dam safety bill [will] spell doom for a lower riparian state like Tamil Nadu,” said a former AIADMK MP, on conditions of anonymity. However, sources close to Raveendranath say that “it was his own opinion when he spoke on the triple talaq bill. He will definitely oppose and make his strong statements when it comes to issues that directly affect the state,” said a leader in the OPS camp.