Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Muslim women have finally found a way out to “free” themselves from the triple talaq practice after “years of hardship”. He also said in 2018, people should work towards all- round development of the nation as his Government pushes for reforms measures to tackle black money, corruption, benami properties and the evils of casteism and terrorism.
Modi said the mantra for the New Year should be “reform, perform, transform” and called for ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ (together with all development for all). “The hardship faced by Muslim mothers and sisters over triple talaq is not hidden from anyone. After years of struggle, they have found a way of freeing themselves from (the practice) of instant triple talaq, he said.
The PM was delivering the inaugural address at the 85th Sivagiri Pilgrimage Celebrations, at Sivagiri Mutt, Varkala, Kerala via video conference. Sivagiri is the holy abode of one of the great saints and social reformers Sree Narayan Guru.
Soon after this speech, Modi in his radio talk - Maan Ki Baat - said his Government has removed the restriction following which hundreds of women have applied to travel alone for the pilgrimage. Prime Minister said removal of the restriction of having a male guardian or ‘mahram’ may appear as a “small thing”, but such issues “has a far reaching impact on our image as a society”. He said when he first heard of the restriction, he was surprised as to who wold have drafted such a rule.
“Why this discriminationIJ And when I went into the depth of the matter I was surprised to find that even after 70 years of our independence, we were the ones who had imposed these restrictions. For decades, injustice was being rendered to Muslim women but there was no discussion on it,” he said in his broadcast. He pointed out that such a restriction is not prevalent in many Islamic countries.
“I am happy to note that this time about 1300 Muslim women have applied to perform Haj without mehram and women from different parts of the country from Kerala to north India, have expressed their wish to go for the Haj pilgrimage,” he said.
He said he has suggested to the Ministry of Minority Affairs that they should ensure that all women who have applied to travel alone be allowed to perform Haj. “Usually there is a lottery system for selection of Haj pilgrims but I would like that single women pilgrims should be excluded from this lottery system and they should be given a chance as a special category,” he said.
He said it is his firm belief that the journey of India’s progress has been possible due to women-power and on the basis of their talent “...It should be our constant endeavour that our women also get equal rights and equal opportunities...,” he said. In his last ‘Mann ki Baat’ address of the year, he suggested that ‘mock Parliament’ be organised around August 15 in Delhi, comprising a young representative selected from every district who would deliberate on how a new India could be formed in the next five years.
He said mock Parliaments should be organised in every district before the proposed event in August in the national capital. He said in the new year, people should take concrete steps to make a “progressive India” and also recounted an inspirational story of Anjum Bashir Khan Khattak, the topper of the Kashmir Administrative Service examination.
“He actually extricated himself from the sting of terrorism and hatred and topped in the Kashmir Administrative Examination. You will be surprised to know that terrorists had set his ancestral home on fire in 1990,” Modi said. He said terrorism and violence were so widespread there that his family had to leave their ancestral land and flee. For a young child, such an atmosphere of violence could easily create darkness and bitterness in heart, but Anjum did not let it be so and he never gave up hope. He chose a different path, a path of serving the people, he said.
On cleanliness, Modi said a change can now be seen in the form of public participation in rural and urban areas alike. He said Cleanliness Survey 2018, the largest in the world, will be conducted from January 4 to March 10 to evaluate the achievements of the mission in urban areas. This survey will cover a population of more than 40 crore in over 4,000 cities.
He said this Republic Day, not one but ten chief guests would grace the January 26 parade at Rajpath.
“...January 26, 2018 will especially be remembered through the ages. The Republic Day will be celebrated with leaders of all ten ASEAN countries coming to India as chief guests...This is unprecedented in India’s history,” he said.”On January 26, the arrival of great leaders of 10 nations of the world as a unit is a matter of pride for all Indians,” Modi said.