Uttarakhand Civil Code Template For Central Law? Buzz After Amit Shah Meet

The Uttarakhand Civil Code Draft, which will be submitted to the state government by the expert committee soon, is likely to be the template for the Centre's ambitious Uniform Civil Code, sources said. Amid a raging debate on the intent of the law, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held a key meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi late Monday night regarding the UCC. He also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where the UCC was discussed, among other issues.

With PM Modi recently raising the pitch on the UCC, the BJP has made it clear that it will be aggressive on its core, ideological issues in the run-up to next year's Lok Sabha elections. The UCC, along with the abrogation of article 370, and building a Ram temple in Ayodhya, were the BJP's big promises before the last elections.

The Chairperson of Uttarakhand UCC Drafting Committee Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai was also present in the Delhi meeting, sources said.

Mr Dhami on Sunday said that soon the UCC expert committee examining the subject will submit the draft.

"As per the promise made to the state's people, today on June 30, the committee formed to prepare the draft of the Uniform Civil Code has completed its work. Soon Uniform Civil Code will be implemented in Devbhoomi Uttarakhand. Jai Hind, Jai Uttarakhand!" he tweeted earlier.

In an interview with NDTV three days back, Mr Dhami argued that the BJP had proposed a Uniform Civil Code for Uttarakhand in its pre-election manifesto, and the people of the state gave it a mandate to implement it by voting it to power. Dismissing accusations of attempting to polarise the state with the new law, he pointed out that the expert committee spoke to around 2,35,000 people, various organisations, religious groups, and other stakeholders before finalising the draft.

The committee, which was set up by the Uttarakhand government last year, has said the bill will strengthen the secular fabric of the country.

Marriage acts of various religions, prevalent personal laws, Law Commission reports, and uncodified issues have all been studied and considered, Ranjana Prakash Desai has said.

To a pointed question on whether the Uttarakhand Civil Code could be a model for other BJP-governed states which may want to move ahead with a uniform code as well, Mr Dhami had said he definitely hopes so, but the committee took into account unique geography, religion, culture, law and order, and other issues specific to the state.

Pushkar Singh Dhami also met PM Modi today on the occasion of him completing two years in the top office. The two discussed various issues, including the UCC.

The UCC calls for the formulation of one law for India, which would be applicable to all religious communities in matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption.

The law commission has sought views and is expected to come up with its recommendations soon. This happened eight months after the Centre told the Supreme Court that the Constitution obligated the State to have a UCC for its citizens, saying that people of different religions and denominations following different property and matrimonial laws was not good for the nation's unity.

The BJP-led governments in Assam and Madhya Pradesh government have also announced the formation of committees. The Goa Civil Code has been in force since Portuguese times and is considered a form of Uniform Civil Code, but it is quite complex on the ground. Gujarat too has said it is taking steps to bring in the UCC.

While the Congress has said a UCC is "neither necessary nor desirable at this stage", other Opposition parties like the DMK, JD(U), RJD, the Left and the Trinamool Congress have been more aggressive in slamming the Centre for it.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently raised the pitch on the issue with a strong push for a Universal Civil Code, asking how can the country function with dual laws that govern personal matters, and accused the Opposition of using the UCC issue to "mislead and provoke" the Muslim community.