Constitutional, not personal, laws supreme

The Allahabad High Court's recent ruling on the practice of "triple talaq" is very meaningful indeed. Dismissing the writ of an elderly Muslim man who was seeking protection for himself and his second wife, half his age, the Court has observed, "The judicial conscience is disturbed at this monstrosity. The first wife has to live life for no fault of her but for the reason that her husband got attracted to a lady half of her age which is the reason for being divorced. The view that the Muslim husband enjoys an arbitrary, unilateral power to inflict evil instant divorce does not accord with Islamic injunctions.... It is a popular fallacy that a Muslim male enjoys, under the Quranic Law, unbridled authority to liquidate the marriage."

The Court has added, "Muslim law, as applied in India, has taken a course contrary to the spirit of what the Prophet or the Holy Quran laid down and the same misconception vitiates the law dealing with the wife's right to divorce.... divorce is permissible in Islam only in case of extreme emergency. When all efforts for effecting a reconciliation have failed, the parties may proceed to a dissolution of marriage by Talaq or by Khola."

The Allahabad High Court on "triple talaq" The Court has lamented, "The instant divorce [triple talaq], though has been deprecated and not followed by all sects of Muslim community in the country, however, is a cruel and the most demeaning form of divorce practised by the Muslim community at large. Women cannot remain at the mercy of the patriarchal setup held under the clutches of sundry clerics having their own interpretation of the holy Quran. Personal laws of any community cannot claim supremacy over the rights granted to individuals by the Constitution."
I am sure the Court's observations would bolster the morale of enlightened, progressive sections in our Muslim community in their ongoing campaign against the arbitrary triple talaq . Certain ultra-conservative elements , such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) , still favour triple talaq. Such forces must be defeated .

There is a consensus among leading Islamic scholars that like all other religions, Islam, too, is for the advancement of the entire humanity. Islam says, 'Good women are for good men." This clearly means men have to be deserving and good to have good women as their life partners. Any denial of respect to women or maltreatment to them is absolutely un-Islamic.

Our political parties, must join the enlightened Muslims in removing this social evil of arbitrary divorce. We all must see to it that no personal laws violate the very soul of any religion and suppress any section of humanity . The rights granted to us by our Constitution must be supreme.

Strategic leadership missing

I wonder when our Republic will have a strategically enlightened political command at the Centre. In the absence of this essential for the very survival of a democratic state, our defence forces have remained by and large deprived of a relative autonomy in their functioning . We have lost parts of our territory to China and Pakistan. More importantly, we have lost so many valuable lives over the years . There is still no end to the ongoing crossborder infiltration, terrorism and violence against India.

General Bipin Rawat Yet New Delhi does not seem to be going in for appropriate measures to keep our defence machine fit to meet its challenges. The pace of our defence modernization remains dead slow. Only the other day the Modi Government appointed Lt General Bipin Rawat , Air Marshal B. S. Dhanoa , Rajeev Jain and Anil Dhasmana as the new chiefs of the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force, the Intelligence Bureau and the

Rajeev Jain and Anil Dhasmana Research and Analysis Wing respectively . The delay in such crucial appointments shows how casually the Government treats matters related to our security and intelligence .

K Subrahmanyam

Chief Air Marshal B. S. Dhanoa In case of the use of tactical nuclear weapons by Islamabad, New Delhi might need to resort to its strategic nukes to give a decisive reply.

General Qamar Javed Bajwa The new Chief of the Pakistan Army, the world's sixth-largest army, is General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaj Sharif may have appointed him for his "pro-democracy credentials." But he may function differently in his new incarnation. None of his predecessors has ever been in favour of building cordial relations with democratic India .

Building the nation

Ashraf Ghani Hopefully, the Heart of Asia conference, held in Amritsar last month, would be speeding up reconstruction in war-torn Afghanistan and bringing peace and normalcy therein. This group consists of 14 states : Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates. The process, initiated under the aegis of the Istanbul Conference in November 2011, to foster regional cooperation and resolve the problems Afghanistan is confronted with today, is very genuine .
Geographically, Afghanistan is located at the junction of Central, South and East Asia. Today it has to win battles against radical Islamist forces such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi did well to focus on the need to counter cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan .
It in the interest of Pakistan's larger humanity that Islamabad end its support to terror groups such the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba . China, too, must use its influence to make Pakistan target the terrorist elements. Beijing may bear in mind that such elements have been in deep ideological relationship with extremists and separatists in China's own province of Xinjiang . If they are not reined in, they may endanger China's national security as well in the due course of time.

Alliance in trouble ?

One wonders what exactly would be new US President Donald Trump's policy towards the North Atlantic Treaty Organization . Knowledgeable sources say he must appreciate the value of the organization for the security insurance not only for Europe but also the United States. However, his utterances all these months have not been assuring . Last year , in March, during his presidential campaign, Trump branded the organization as obsolete and expensive. In June Trump said he would require all allies to equally bear its expenses . He complained NATO was not fighting terrorism effectively. In July Trump said the US would protect only those NATO members who met their financial obligations

Donald Trump Trump ought to remember that after the 9/11 attacks, Washington's NATO allies joined its "war on terror" against al Qaeda. In the wake of the Russian invasion and occupation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014, NATO -- in particular, the Baltic states and Poland, once part of the Soviet bloc-- decided to take significant measures to deter
Moscow from carrying out other possible aggressive military actions. NATO also takes part in the fight against terrorism. A counterterrorist NATO naval force is deployed in the Mediterranean Sea. NATO states participate in the war against IS in Syria and Iraq. They take measures to protect its member states against cyberattacks.
The alliance has also set up an anti-ballistic missile defense system to protect member states from an attack by 'rogue' states. The organization has significant deterrence power vis-à-vis Russia and Iran. This is one of the central reasons why the US has been the main contributor to NATO's budget. In addition, US commercial interests benefit from defense industry sales to NATO and to NATO allies.
Those who think Washington under President Donald Trump would be cold to Beijing may better rethink . Knowledgeable sources say the pattern of interaction between the United States and China has been pragmatic since the Nixon- Kissinger years. Trump is highly unlikely to disturb it.

Pragmatic pattern

Xi Jinping Of course, throughout his election campaign Trump did lambast China and pledge to slap 45 per cent tariffs on imported Chinese goods. He also labelled communist China as a currency manipulator. But that is how election in fought and won in a democracy these days.
After his election, Chinese President Xi Jinping wasted no time to call on Trump to tell him the two nations were the world's largest economies . There were many areas to cooperate and benefit each other
Head of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Jin Liqun has said in a media interview to People's Daily : "I have heard a certain senior official of President Barack Obama speak good of the AIIB and after Donald Trump won, I was told that many in his team have an opinion that Obama was not right not to join the AIIB, specially after Canada joined which was a very loud endorsement of the bank. So we can't rule out the new government in U.S. endorsing the AIIB or indicating interest to join as member."
A report in the People' Daily hints the U.S. may embrace 'One Belt, One Road ( OBOR) if Beijing agreed not to the alter the status quo in the Asia-Pacific. Former CIA Director James Woolsey, who is part of Trump's inner-circle, has "recognised China's leadership role" asserting " the balance of power in Asia depends on America's strength". Woolsey has "called U.S. opposition to the formation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank 'a strategic mistake,' and said that the new administration should warm up to the 'Belt and Road' initiative."



		EDITOR'S MAIL MATTERS OF PUBLIC POLICY NOTEBANDI DRAMA NOTEBANDI DRAMA FRANKLY SPEAKING POLL 2017 TAMIL NADU POLITICS TAMIL NADU POLITICS REALPOLITIK POLITICAL RESERVATION KASHMIR WATCH A HOLLOW RITUALRY ENVIRONMENTAL FALLOUT BABY TRAFFICKING AVIATION NOTE HITS & MISSES SPORT NOTEBOOK NEW PAK ARMY CHIEF PAGE FROM HISTORY MIDDLE EAST SCENE US WATCH NEW WHITE HOUSE INDO-VIETNAMESE TIES BOOK BAZAAR BOOK BAZAAR GENDER VIOLENCE SIGNS OF THE TIMES YOGA IN DAILY LIFE-IX ART OF LIVING Issue:January' 2017 Subscribe Now	REALPOLITIK Constitutional, not personal, laws supreme The Allahabad High Court's recent ruling on the practice of "triple talaq" is very meaningful indeed. Dismissing the writ of an elderly Muslim man who was seeking protection for himself and his second wife, half his age, the Court has observed, "The judicial conscience is disturbed at this monstrosity. The first wife has to live life for no fault of her but for the reason that her husband got attracted to a lady half of her age which is the reason for being divorced. The view that the Muslim husband enjoys an arbitrary, unilateral power to inflict evil instant divorce does not accord with Islamic injunctions.... It is a popular fallacy that a Muslim male enjoys, under the Quranic Law, unbridled authority to liquidate the marriage." The Court has added, "Muslim law, as applied in India, has taken a course contrary to the spirit of what the Prophet or the Holy Quran laid down and the same misconception vitiates the law dealing with the wife's right to divorce.... divorce is permissible in Islam only in case of extreme emergency. When all efforts for effecting a reconciliation have failed, the parties may proceed to a dissolution of marriage by Talaq or by Khola." The Allahabad High Court on "triple talaq" The Court has lamented, "The instant divorce [triple talaq], though has been deprecated and not followed by all sects of Muslim community in the country, however, is a cruel and the most demeaning form of divorce practised by the Muslim community at large. Women cannot remain at the mercy of the patriarchal setup held under the clutches of sundry clerics having their own interpretation of the holy Quran. Personal laws of any community cannot claim supremacy over the rights granted to individuals by the Constitution." I am sure the Court's observations would bolster the morale of enlightened, progressive sections in our Muslim community in their ongoing campaign against the arbitrary triple talaq . Certain ultra-conservative elements , such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) , still favour triple talaq. Such forces must be defeated . There is a consensus among leading Islamic scholars that like all other religions, Islam, too, is for the advancement of the entire humanity. Islam says, 'Good women are for good men." This clearly means men have to be deserving and good to have good women as their life partners. Any denial of respect to women or maltreatment to them is absolutely un-Islamic. Our political parties, must join the enlightened Muslims in removing this social evil of arbitrary divorce. We all must see to it that no personal laws violate the very soul of any religion and suppress any section of humanity . The rights granted to us by our Constitution must be supreme. Strategic leadership missing I wonder when our Republic will have a strategically enlightened political command at the Centre. In the absence of this essential for the very survival of a democratic state, our defence forces have remained by and large deprived of a relative autonomy in their functioning . We have lost parts of our territory to China and Pakistan. More importantly, we have lost so many valuable lives over the years . There is still no end to the ongoing crossborder infiltration, terrorism and violence against India. General Bipin Rawat Yet New Delhi does not seem to be going in for appropriate measures to keep our defence machine fit to meet its challenges. The pace of our defence modernization remains dead slow. Only the other day the Modi Government appointed Lt General Bipin Rawat , Air Marshal B. S. Dhanoa , Rajeev Jain and Anil Dhasmana as the new chiefs of the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force, the Intelligence Bureau and the Rajeev Jain and Anil Dhasmana Research and Analysis Wing respectively . The delay in such crucial appointments shows how casually the Government treats matters related to our security and intelligence . K Subrahmanyam Chief Air Marshal B. S. Dhanoa In case of the use of tactical nuclear weapons by Islamabad, New Delhi might need to resort to its strategic nukes to give a decisive reply. General Qamar Javed Bajwa The new Chief of the Pakistan Army, the world's sixth-largest army, is General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaj Sharif may have appointed him for his "pro-democracy credentials." But he may function differently in his new incarnation. None of his predecessors has ever been in favour of building cordial relations with democratic India . Building the nation Ashraf Ghani Hopefully, the Heart of Asia conference, held in Amritsar last month, would be speeding up reconstruction in war-torn Afghanistan and bringing peace and normalcy therein. This group consists of 14 states : Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates. The process, initiated under the aegis of the Istanbul Conference in November 2011, to foster regional cooperation and resolve the problems Afghanistan is confronted with today, is very genuine . Geographically, Afghanistan is located at the junction of Central, South and East Asia. Today it has to win battles against radical Islamist forces such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi did well to focus on the need to counter cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan . It in the interest of Pakistan's larger humanity that Islamabad end its support to terror groups such the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba . China, too, must use its influence to make Pakistan target the terrorist elements. Beijing may bear in mind that such elements have been in deep ideological relationship with extremists and separatists in China's own province of Xinjiang . If they are not reined in, they may endanger China's national security as well in the due course of time. Alliance in trouble ? One wonders what exactly would be new US President Donald Trump's policy towards the North Atlantic Treaty Organization . Knowledgeable sources say he must appreciate the value of the organization for the security insurance not only for Europe but also the United States. However, his utterances all these months have not been assuring . Last year , in March, during his presidential campaign, Trump branded the organization as obsolete and expensive. In June Trump said he would require all allies to equally bear its expenses . He complained NATO was not fighting terrorism effectively. In July Trump said the US would protect only those NATO members who met their financial obligations Donald Trump Trump ought to remember that after the 9/11 attacks, Washington's NATO allies joined its "war on terror" against al Qaeda. In the wake of the Russian invasion and occupation of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014, NATO -- in particular, the Baltic states and Poland, once part of the Soviet bloc-- decided to take significant measures to deter Moscow from carrying out other possible aggressive military actions. NATO also takes part in the fight against terrorism. A counterterrorist NATO naval force is deployed in the Mediterranean Sea. NATO states participate in the war against IS in Syria and Iraq. They take measures to protect its member states against cyberattacks. The alliance has also set up an anti-ballistic missile defense system to protect member states from an attack by 'rogue' states. The organization has significant deterrence power vis-à-vis Russia and Iran. This is one of the central reasons why the US has been the main contributor to NATO's budget. In addition, US commercial interests benefit from defense industry sales to NATO and to NATO allies. Those who think Washington under President Donald Trump would be cold to Beijing may better rethink . Knowledgeable sources say the pattern of interaction between the United States and China has been pragmatic since the Nixon- Kissinger years. Trump is highly unlikely to disturb it. Pragmatic pattern Xi Jinping Of course, throughout his election campaign Trump did lambast China and pledge to slap 45 per cent tariffs on imported Chinese goods. He also labelled communist China as a currency manipulator. But that is how election in fought and won in a democracy these days. After his election, Chinese President Xi Jinping wasted no time to call on Trump to tell him the two nations were the world's largest economies . There were many areas to cooperate and benefit each other Head of the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Jin Liqun has said in a media interview to People's Daily : "I have heard a certain senior official of President Barack Obama speak good of the AIIB and after Donald Trump won, I was told that many in his team have an opinion that Obama was not right not to join the AIIB, specially after Canada joined which was a very loud endorsement of the bank. So we can't rule out the new government in U.S. endorsing the AIIB or indicating interest to join as member." A report in the People' Daily hints the U.S. may embrace 'One Belt, One Road ( OBOR) if Beijing agreed not to the alter the status quo in the Asia-Pacific. Former CIA Director James Woolsey, who is part of Trump's inner-circle, has "recognised China's leadership role" asserting " the balance of power in Asia depends on America's strength". Woolsey has "called U.S. opposition to the formation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank 'a strategic mistake,' and said that the new administration should warm up to the 'Belt and Road' initiative."