Assam bans break for offering namaz on Fridays

Assam bans break for offering namaz on Fridays

He said that this decision was taken in a meeting convened by Assam Assembly Speaker Biswajit Daimary and it was taken unanimously, which was also supported by other MLAs. "Everyone has expressed support for this decision. Studies have found that in other states, there is no provision for giving a break for offering namaz in Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and Vidhan Sabha houses. So the speaker of Assam assembly also decided to abolish this British-era rule," Phukan said.

According to him, the Assam assembly begins at 9.30 am from Monday to Thursday and at 9 am on Fridays to allow a two-hour break for namaz. However, since this has been changed, the assembly will now begin its operations at 9.30 am every day. Notably, Assam has abolished another pre-independence rule. The Assam assembly on Thursday passed a bill that makes Muslim marriages and divorces compulsory to be registered with the government.

The assembly passed the Assam Compulsory Registration of Muslim Marriages and Divorces Bill, 2024, which aims to protect the rights of Muslim women and men and eliminate child marriages. The law replaces the old Assam Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Act, 1935. Speaking in the discussion on the bill, CM Sarma said, "The states with the highest Muslim population in India are Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir. There was already a law to register Muslim marriages. In Kerala, this Act would have been brought by either the Congress or the Left government as the BJP has never been in power in this southern state." He also expressed concern about Muslim women and said the Muslim Marriage Registration Act would provide them protection.