After Ishrat, her lawyer Nazia joins BJP: Will triple talaq issue help the party’s rise in WB?

After triple talaq petitioner Ishrat Jahan joined the BJP, her lawyer and activist Nazia Elahi Khan joined the party in Kolkata on Thursday.

Kolkata, Jan 5: The triple talaq bill has been stuck in the Rajya Sabha because of the protest raised against it by the leaders of opposition parties on Thursday. The bill, which has been passed in the Lok Sabha recently, is unlikely to be passed in the Upper House during the Winter Session of Parliament, which ends on Friday.

In spite of all the roadblocks, it seems the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)--which has shown steadfast support to the Muslim women fighting against the practice of triple talaq--is unlikely to let go the political benefits the party is going to get because of the issue.

After Ishrat Jahan--one of the main petitioners in the triple talaq case in Supreme Court--joined the BJP in West Bengal recently, on Thursday, her lawyer and activist Nazia Elahi Khan too joined the party at an event in Kolkata.

Nazia Elahi Khan, activist and lawyer of #TripleTalaq victim Ishrat Jehan also joins BJP in Kolkata. Ishrat Jehan had already joined BJP pic.twitter.com/cSmnCHnsM2

— ANI (@ANI) January 4, 2018

Thus, two of the main faces against triple talaq joining the BJP is sure going to give a major boost to the party in West Bengal where it is struggling hard to establish itself as a major challenger to the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).

The announcement of Nazia joining the party was made by BJP state president Dilip Ghosh at the party's office in Kolkata.

Ishrat was one of the five petitioners in the triple talaq case. Her husband had divorced her over the phone from Dubai in 2014 by uttering the word "talaq" thrice.

The controversial Islamic practice was struck down by the Supreme Court on August 22. Recently, the Lok Sabha has passed the triple talaq bill. Now, the bill has to be passed by the Upper House of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, to become a law.

The passage of the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill will make the practice of triple talaq criminal.

Political experts say Ishrat and her lawyer joining the BJP will definitely help the party in West Bengal where it is trying hard to emerge as a dominant force. Experts add that with Ishrat coming to the BJP's fold, the saffron party will be able to win the vote and trust of Muslim women in the state as well as the country.

Ishrat could be the BJP's Muslim mascot in West Bengal, where the party is regularly challenging the ruling TMC after the Mamata Banerjee government came to power in the state after winning the Assembly elections in 2016.

Along with several Muslim women, who have been fighting for long to end the practice of triple talaq, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ruling BJP are given most of the credit for the passage of the triple talaq bill in the Lok Sabha recently.

After joining the BJP, both Ishrat and her lawyer stated that they will work for women empowerment.

OneIndia News