NEW DELHI: The Law Commission of India on Monday sought to place the matter before a parliamentary panel to re-examine the issue of Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country, even as Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and India The Nations Committee (BRS) questioned the move to renew the consultation in 2018 despite the Commission’s view that the UCC is “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage”.
The head of the parliamentary panel on Personnel, Public Grievances and Law and Justice – Bharatiya Janata Party member Sushil Kumar Modi – advocated keeping tribal communities and northeastern states out of the purview of any proposed UCC, saying the Constitution protects certain groups from their Some exceptions were allowed to help them comply with customs. It was also informed in the meeting that in some northeastern states, central laws are not applicable without their consent. Many tribal groups in central India and the Northeast have resisted any push for the UCC, and expressed concern that their unique customs and traditional laws would be eroded.
According to people familiar with the matter, leaders of BJP, Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Bahujan Samaj Party supported the UCC.
The first Parliamentary Standing Committee meeting after the Law Panel initiated the consultation process on UCC was held to hear the views of the representatives of the Commission and the Legal Affairs and Legislative Departments of the Ministry of Law. Seventeen of the panel’s 31 MPs attended the meeting, in which Congress and DMK leaders questioned the Law Commission’s June 14 notice seeking views and suggestions on the UCC from the public at large and recognized religious organizations .
Congress MP Vivek Tankha and DMK MP P Wilson submitted separate written statements questioning the move of the Law Commission, which was represented at the meeting by its member secretary Khetrabasi Biswal. Rejecting the need for a fresh debate on the UCC, the MPs referred to a consultation paper issued by the 21st Law Commission in 2018. The paper stated that the UCC was “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage” and recommended that existing family laws across all religions require that personal laws be amended and codified to deal with discrimination and inequality. Endorsing the views adopted in the 2018 consultation paper, the MPs also questioned the timing of the 22nd Law Commission’s move, linking the push for the UCC to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Other Congress MPs, Manickam Tagore, Jasbir Singh Gill and Kuldeep Rai Sharma also questioned the timing of the government’s introduction of the UCC.
The people cited above said that the Member-Secretary of the Law Commission made a detailed presentation on the exercise undertaken by it on UCC and tried to clarify that the statements made in the 2018 consultation paper were not meant to be recommendations or final views of the Law Commission. cannot be considered as such. On Uniform Civil Code in India.
Biswal said the consultation paper was one of the last reports submitted by the 21st Law Commission headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice BS Chauhan. After the term of the 21st Law Commission ended on August 31, 2018, there was no Law Commission for more than four years. It was also pointed out that more than three years have elapsed from the date of issue of the said advisory. People with knowledge of the matter said the commission thought it appropriate to start the consultation process afresh considering the relevance of the subject and various court orders related to the UCC. The parliamentary panel was informed that the Law Commission had received 1.9 million suggestions while the previous panel had received 75,000 views on the UCC.
Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena (UBT) and BSP supported UCC in the meeting. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut put out a warning that the push for the UCC should not be a political ploy ahead of next year’s Lok Sabha elections.
As per the people mentioned above, the Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative will submit its views to the parliamentary panel in writing.
UCC essentially means a common set of laws governing personal matters such as marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance and succession for all citizens of the country, irrespective of religion. Currently, different laws regulate these aspects for adherents of different religions and UCC is meant to do away with these inconsistent personal laws.
Article 44 of the Constitution, which is one of the Directive Principles of State Policy, lays down that the State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. However, directive principles, as Article 37 clarifies, are not enforceable by courts.
UCC has created a lot of political heat ever since the Law Commission sought views from the stakeholders. Implementation of UCC has been part of BJP election manifestos, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing BJP workers in Bhopal last month made a strong push for it. Asking how the country can function with dual laws that govern personal matters, Modi accused the Opposition of using the UCC issue to “mislead and provoke” the Muslim community.
