Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant talks to NDTV on the UCC and other issues
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in an interview to NDTV said the entire country should welcome the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) as it will bring equality between men and women.
He said the entire point of the UCC is to do away with old rules and ways that are no longer compatible with a progressive society.
"We should welcome the UCC. The young, educated crowd understands that the UCC is necessary," Mr Sawant told NDTV.
"When we talk about men-women equality, their properties' share should also be equal. Those who have problems with this are objecting to equality for women. It is an orthodox thought. We need to be progressive," he told NDTV.
The Goa Chief Minister said he expects all states to welcome the UCC. "There should be no hurdles in implementing the UCC... Women from minority communities will definitely want UCC as they will get more rights and equality," Mr Sawant said.
Under the UCC, a set of common laws will look after personal matters such as divorce, inheritance and succession, and marriage for all citizens. Despite Article 44 of the Constitution allowing for a UCC, successive governments have let religion-based civil codes to remain.
Mr Sawant had in the past said the Goa Civil Code can be a model for other states to emulate.
In August 2023, President Droupadi Murmu had hailed the common civil code in Goa as a matter of pride for the state and a good example for the country. She had also noted that women enjoy an equal status in the state's cosmopolitan culture.