Uttarakhand To Implement Uniform Civil Code Soon After Final Draft Report Is Submitted By The Panel: CM Dhami

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday (27 June) said that the Uniform Civil Code will be implemented in the state soon.

He added that the UCC will be implemented soon after the final draft of the Code is submitted by the state government appointed committee.

Dhami's statement comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while virtually interacting with 10 lakh BJP booth workers, highlighted that the UCC is envisioned in the constitution and emphasized that the Supreme Court has also called for its implementation.

However, PM Modi cautioned against the misuse of the UCC issue to mislead and provoke the Muslim community, accusing the opposition of engaging in vote bank politics.

During his address, PM Modi asserted that it is impractical to run a country with multiple sets of laws and stressed the importance of equal rights as enshrined in the Constitution. He pointed out that those opposing the UCC are prioritizing their own political gains over the welfare of the nation.

"Today people are being instigated in the name of UCC. How can the country be run on two (laws)? The Constitution also talks of equal rights...Supreme Court has also asked to implement UCC," the Prime Minister said at the gathering of BJP workers.

Dhami said that PM Modi's statement about some people provoking the public in the name of UCC was "literally true".

"Just imagine how can there be different laws in the house for the members of the same family," Dhami said in Hindi.

It should be noted that Dhami had earlier last month announced that the the committee set up by the state government to draft the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will submit its report by 30 June.

Implementation of a Uniform Civil Code was one of the major poll promises made by the BJP in run-up to the Uttarakhand assembly elections in 2022, if voted back to power in the state.

After the party won the elections, CM Dhami formed the five-member committee headed by former Supreme Court judge justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, days after taking oath in May last year.

The Uttarakhand UCC panel in its report is likely to suggest raising the marriageable age of girls.

Further, the committee led by former Supreme Court Justice Ranjana Desai is reportedly also considering banning the traditions like 'halala' and 'iddat'.

The committee has been seeking suggestions on the draft UCC from the citizens of Uttarakhand, even those who live outside the state.

One of the crucial suggestions received by the committee pertains to compensation for the parents of an employed son in the event of his untimely demise, even if his wife chooses to remarry.

Shatrughan Singh, a member of the Uttarakhand's UCC drafting committee and former IAS officer, shed light on the discussions taking place.

"The committee has also received suggestions that in case of death of an employed son, his parents are eligible for compensation apart from his wife.  Even if the wife re-marries, then also they should have a share in the compensation received on the death of the husband," Singh was quoted as saying by The New Indian Express.

“In such a case, if the wife dies, her parents have no support, and then the responsibility of their maintenance should be with the husband. The committee is also brainstorming on all these suggestions,” he added.

According to media reports, the suggestions received by the UCC panel includes ban on polygamy, declaration of Live-In relationship and parents informed, girls to get equal share in ancestral property, adoption for all, and application of equal grounds for divorce to both husband and wife.