Daily Current Capsules - 22^nd JUNE 2019

Miscellaneous Factoids
Summer Solstice - 21 June as 2019 Longest Day in Northern Hemisphere

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about summer solstice and the related phenomenon)
What's the NEWS

• 21 June marks the beginning of Summer Season!. Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year, marking the official start of the summer season.

Know! more about Summer Solstice

• Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year which is considered as the official start of the summer season. The day coincides with the World Music Day as well as the International Day of Yoga.
• June 21 is the longest day of the year 2019 as it marks the Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.
• Today, the half of the planet, i.e. people living north of the Equator will enjoy the maximum amount of sunlight in a single day.
• The warmest season of the year, the Summer Season begins in the Northern hemisphere today with the Summer Solstice and will last till September 22 or 23.

Literal meaning of Summer Solstice

• Summer Solstice is also known as the ‘June Solstice' and the literal meaning of Summer Solstice is ‘Sun standing still'.

Know! more about the phenomenon of Summer Solstice

• Summer Solstice is the day when our Earth is completely tilted towards the Sun at the maximum point.
• The Sun reaches its highest point in the sky and gets positioned directly above the Tropic of Cancer. When the Sun is at the highest point, its movement appears to come to a halt.
• This period - 21 June till September 22 or 23 - marks the longest days and shortest nights. However, the Date of Summer Solstice fluctuates depending upon the climate and tradition. While the people of Northern Hemisphere witness summer now, the Southern Hemisphere sees winter and vice versa.
• Hence, the day, 21 June marks the shortest day in the Southern Hemisphere, officially marking the beginning of winter season there. This phenomenon is called the Winter Solstice.

Social Justice
Triple talaq bill reintroduced in Lok Sabha 
Relevance IN - Prelims ( all about triple talaq bill ) + Mains ( GS II government policies and interventions for the development of various sectors +Social Justice) 

What's the NEWS

• The Triple talaq bill also known as the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 was tabled in the Lok Sabha on, June 21, 2019.
• The fresh bill has been introduced to make instant divorce among Muslims or 'triple talaq' illegal after the previous ordinance lapsed as it could not be passed in the upper house of the Parliament, the Rajya Sabha following dissolution of the Lok Sabha to make way for Lok Sabha Elections 2019.

Know! more about the freshly introduced triple talaq bill

• The fresh triple talaq bill has been tabled a day after President Ram Nath Kovind addressed a joint session of Parliament.
• The triple talaq bill if passed by the Lok Sabha will replace the previous ordinance.

Who raised voice against the bill

• As soon as the bill was introduced, Senior Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor, opposed the bill stating that though he is against instant Talaq, he is opposed to making it a criminal offence.
• He stated that the bill does nothing to help muslim women and the scope of the bill should be extended to women of all communities and religion.
• Asaduddin Owaisi, also opposed the bill saying that it violates Article 14 and 15 of the Constitution.

Know! about the inception of the bill

• The Lok Sabha had passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018, also known as, Triple Talaq Bill on December 27, 2018.
• The bill was passed with 245 votes in favour and 11 against.
• The bill seeked to make instant triple talaq void and illegal and it also aimed to make the practice of instant triple talaq a punishable offence with imprisonment of up to three years.
• Following the approval of the lower house, the bill was sent to the upper house of the Parliament for approval. However, the contentious bill lapsed after it was still pending in the Rajya Sabha when the 16th Lok Sabha was dissolved.
• The bills that are introduced in Rajya Sabha and are pending there upon the dissolution of Lok Sabha do not lapse. However, the bills that are introduced in Lok Sabha and passed by the house but are pending in

Know! more about the bill

• The Bill was introduced in Lok Sabha by the Minister of Law and Justice, Ravi Shankar Prasad on December 17, 2018.
• The Bill will replace the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance-2018, promulgated on September 19, 2018.
• The Bill makes instant triple talaq void and illegal. It seeks to make the practice of instant triple talaq a punishable offence with imprisonment of up to three years.
• The bill says that "any pronouncement of talaq by a person upon his wife, by words, either spoken or written or in electronic form or in any other manner whatsoever, shall be void and illegal."
• It makes instant triple talaq or talaq-e-biddat illegal and void, be it in any form- spoken form, in writing or by electronic means such as email, SMS and WhatsApp or in any other manner whatsoever.
• It defines 'talaq' as 'talaq-e-biddat' pronounced by a Muslim man resulting in instant and irrevocable divorce.
• alaq-e-biddat refers to the practice under Muslim personal laws where pronouncement of the word ‘talaq' thrice in one sitting by a Muslim man to his wife results in an instant and irrevocable divorce.

Declaration of talaq a cognisable and non-bailable offence

• It makes declaration of talaq a cognisable and non-bailable offence. A husband declaring talaq can be imprisoned for up to three years along with a fine.
• The offence will be cognisable only if information relating to the offence is given either by the woman against whom talaq has been declared or by any person related to her by blood or marriage.
• Any offence committed under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 will be treated as cognisable and non-bailable.

Know! the Powers of magistrate

• The magistrate can decide on releasing the husband on bail only after hearing the woman against whom talaq has been pronounced, and only if the Magistrate is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for granting bail.
• The offence of instant triple talaq "compoundable", where a magistrate can use his powers to settle the dispute between a husband and his wife. It allows a wife to drop the case, if husband returns to her later and they arrive at a compromise.

• It envisages entitling divorcee Muslim women for maintenance. It gives power to wife, upon whom talaq is pronounced, to approach a magistrate seeking subsistence allowance for herself and her minor children.
• A married Muslim woman will be entitled to custody of her minor children in the event of pronouncement of talaq by her husband, which will be determined by the Magistrate.

Know! the significance of the bill

• The Bill will help in ensuring gender justice and gender equality of married Muslim women and will help them in practising their fundamental rights of non-discrimination and empowerment.

Know! the Supreme Court's ruling on instant Triple Talaq

• The Supreme Court on August 22, 2017 held the Islamic practice of 'instant' triple talaq' as unconstitutional.
• The verdict was delivered by a 5-judge bench led by the then Chief Justice J S Khehar. All the 5 judges belonged to 5 different religions.
• The verdict came out in a ratio of 3:2, as two judges including the Chief Justice voted to uphold the practice saying that it cannot be declared illegal, while others called it unconstitutional and banned it for a period of 6 months till the government introduced a new law.
• The court also held that the practice of instant triple talaq was violative of Article 14 and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. It also goes against Shariat and the basic tenets of the Quran.

Miscellaneous Factoids
International Yoga Day 2019
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about international yoga day)

What's the NEWS

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi led fifth International Yoga Day 2019 at Prabhat Tara Ground, Ranchi.

Theme For International Yoga Day 2019

• The theme for International Yoga Day 2019 is Climate Action and it will be celebrated at the United Nations on Thursday (June 20) with "Yoga with Gurus," followed by a panel discussion on 21 June.
• UN says that Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India. The word ‘yoga' derives from Sanskrit and means to join or to unite, symbolizing the union of body and consciousness.

Know! the History of International Yoga Day

• The United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 2014, announced that June 21 will be seen as International Yoga Day or World Yoga Day. Since 2015, International Yoga Day is been celebrated worldwide. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September of 2014 addressed the UN assembly and discussed the essence of Yoga. Previous themes of International Yoga Day:
• 2015: Yoga for Harmony and Peace 2016: Connect the youth 2017: Yoga for Health 2018: Yoga for Peace 2019: Yoga for Heart

Significance of International Yoga Day

• Yoga is ancient Indian practice and International Yoga Day provides a holistic approach to health and well-being.
• Yoga is a blend of physical, mental, as well as spiritual practices that are said to have originated 5,000 years ago. The practice of yoga comprises of breath control, meditation and adoption of particular body postures.
  
  

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