Union Minorities Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Saturday hit out at “professional protesters” with “Talibani mentality” for creating roadblock in the path to women’s empowerment.
The Minister was speaking on the context of the recent Cabinet decision to increase the legal age of marriage for women to 21 years from 18 years, bringing it on a par with that for men.
The Indian Union Muslim League and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen have objected to the change. IUML member in the Rajya Sabha Adbul Wahab on Friday moved an adjournment motion, calling the Cabinet decision an attempt to encroach on Muslim personal law.
“Those who opposed making the social evil of triple talaq a crime and raised question on removal of restriction on Muslim women to perform Haj with Mehram only are now creating commotion on the constitutional equality regarding age of marriage of women. These people are professional protesters,” Mr. Naqvi said at an event in Delhi to mark Minorities Day.
India, he said, had believers of almost all religions of the world and also a large number of atheists. Irrespective of their faith, every one enjoyed equal constitutional and social rights.
Mr. Naqvi said the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had worked with the commitment to “Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas” during the past seven years, which has ensured significant reforms and inclusive development of all sections of the society, including the minorities.
The school dropout rate among Muslim girls which was more than 70% before 2014 had fallen to 30%, he said. “Our aim is to make it zero per cent in the coming days,” he added.
In the Rajya Sabha, where Mr. Naqvi is the Deputy Leader of the BJP, the ruling party members have over the past few days spoken on a host of issues that fall under the core agenda of the BJP.
BJP MP Harnath Singh Yadav spoke during the Zero Hour, seeking repeal of the Places of Worship Act to allow the construction of a Krishna temple at an alleged disputed site in Mathura. The Places of Worship Act, which was brought in by the Narasimha Rao government in 1991 which while keeping the Ram Temple dispute outside the purview of this law, froze the status of places of worship as they were on August 15, 1947. Later in the week, Mr. Singh also pushed for a stringent law against religious conversion alleging that the Hindu population in the country had been steadily decreasing.
