fortune play BJP And Uniform Civil Code Drive: Acting On Directive Principles Or Communal Agenda?

Outlook Cover on UCC Outlook Cover on UCC

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has announced that his government will implement a Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand starting from January 2025. This decision by the BJP CM tallies with the party's (BJP) longstanding agenda of bringing in the UCC across the country.

 The UCC, as per Article 44 of the Indian Constitution, is a single legal framework to govern civil laws for all Indian citizens, regardless of special interests such as religion. This would include removing personal laws for groups such as Muslims and Christians around marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, and other civil matters. This would bring India’s civil laws in line with its criminal ones, which have always applied to citizens with no exceptions.

The Uniform Civil Code can be traced back to British times. An 1835 report first sought to codify India’s laws around crimes and contracts while deliberately excluding personal laws from this unification. In 1941, the B N Rau Committee worked towards codifying Hindu laws, advocating equal rights for women in marriage and inheritance.

 Dr. B R Ambedkar, a champion of the UCC, argued that, "No one need be apprehensive that if the State has the power, it will immediately proceed to execute that power in a manner objectionable to any community." Due to legistlative apprehensions, Article 44 was incorporated as a Directive Principle of State Policy, as part of the State's endeavour to secure a UCC when societal conditions allowed for it.

Critics of the UCC often argue that it undermines India's pluralistic ethos and infringes on religious freedoms. However, the BJP has made the UCC a central promise in its election manifestos, including the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Uttarakhand's decision, with Chief Minister Dhami framing the initiative as a step toward "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas" is a step towards that election promise. Uttarakhand’s decision could set a precedent for other states and rekindle national discussions on the UCC.

Advocates for the UCC cite it as a logical conclusion to India’s efforts to reform personal laws to promote gender equality. The Hindu Succession Act of 1956, for example, was a result of verbose debates on the Hindu Code Bill, and granted women greater property rights, making daughters equal heirs alongside sons. In 2005, amendments further elevated daughters to Class I heirs, ensuring parity in inheritance.

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However, the BJP’s push for the UCC has often been viewed through a communal lens, with critics accusing the party of using the issue to consolidate its support base.

Outlook has extensively dealt with the debate on UCC in previous issues. In the issue dated June 11, 2023, Omar Rashid had looked at whether there can be a progressive Uniform Civil Code that is acceptable to all sections of society, gender and communities.

In the same issue Tanvir Aeijaz had written that while the UCC in itself may not be a bad idea, in a pluri-national and multi-religious nation like India, it may not be the best option

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