On Civil Code, Jamiat Chief Invokes Babri Masjid, Says "What Could We Do"

The Muslims will put forth their views about Uniform Civil Code, but there is little hope of being heard, Maulana Arshad Madani, the chief of Jamiat Ulema E Hind, the largest Muslim body of India, told NDTV on Wednesday. "What can anyone do? Now that the Prime Minister has openly said that the religious rights of Muslims will be taken away...," he told NDTV in an exclusive interview.

The Maulana is also a member of the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board, which held an emergency meeting late Tuesday night after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strong push for a uniform civil code. On Tuesday, PM Modi had declared that a country cannot run on two laws, any more than a family can have "different set of rules for different members".

In the three-hour meeting, the Law Board decided to submit its views to the Law Commission, which has sought views from all stakeholders.

But the Maulana made it clear that he was not expecting much.

"We know whatever the Law Commission decides -- it will not be based on what we say, no matter how many thousands of delegations or requests we send. It will take into account the views of the government... Now that the PM is supporting it, expecting the Law Commission to take our views into account is too much," he said.

Asked how the Muslim community might respond, he said, "What can the Muslims do in these circumstances... What can anyone do? I have asked Muslims not to hit the roads. They can put their views across in a dignified manner".

Asked what path the Muslims will take in case Uniform Civil Code actually comes into effect, he said, "What can we do anyway? What more can we lose?"

"Our masjid is gone, what could we do? We can only keep the faith alive in our daily lives, if god wills," he added, referring to the Babri Masjid of Ayodhya that was pulled down by Kar Sevaks in 1992.  

The Uniform Civil Code refers to a set of overarching laws that apply to everyone in the country and replaces religion-based personal laws, rules of inheritance, adoption and succession.

Article 44 of the Constitution calls upon the State to aim for a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. The article maintains that there is no connection between religion and matters of secular nature like marriage, divorce, or succession.

Today, Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party said it supports the uniform civil code "in principle" but the way forward for its implementation should be through dialogues and discussion with all stakeholders.