SC notice to Centre on PIL against Muslim personal law sections being 'discriminatory' against women
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Thursday sought the Centre's response on a PIL challenging the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937, on the ground that those are allegedly discriminatory against women.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Panchol took note of the submissions made by lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who appeared in the matter for petitioners Poulomi Pavini Shukla and the Nyaya Naari Foundation, and issued a notice to the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs.
The plea says the current Shariat inheritance rules are "manifestly discriminatory" against women, often granting them only half or less of the share allocated to their male counterparts.
Bhushan said the 1937 Act violates Article 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution.
He said matters of succession are civil in nature and do not constitute an "essential religious practice" protected under Article 25.
"Saying women will get half or even less than half compared to male counterparts is discriminatory," the lawyer said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengaluru: CCB busts citywide prostitution racket; four arrested, four rescued
Bengaluru (PTI): Four women were arrested and four others, two of whom were from other states, were rescued after the CCB busted a prostitution racket operating from rented houses across the city, police said on Thursday.
The operation was carried out by the Central Crime Branch’s Women Protection Squad based on credible information gathered over multiple days about illegal activities at various locations, they said.
According to the police, houses had been rented in Manuvana, Vijayanagar, Ramaswamipalya, Banaswadi, Andrahalli, Veerabhadreshwara Nagar, and Byadarahalli, where women were being confined and forced into prostitution.
Acting on specific inputs, coordinated raids were conducted at these locations. During the operation, four women who were allegedly being forced into prostitution were rescued. Four women accused of running the racket were arrested, a senior police officer said.
During interrogation, the accused reportedly confessed that they contacted clients over the phone and arranged meetings at the rented houses to carry out the illegal activities to earn more money, he added.
Cases have been registered at Vijayanagar, Banaswadi, and Byadarahalli police stations. The accused were produced before the court on different dates and have been remanded to judicial custody, police said.
