Why does the Government want to Introduce UCC Through The States, rather than a Central Law?

UCC: During the discussion on the Constitution in Rajya Sabha yesterday, i.e. on 17 December, Union Home Minister Amit Shah gave his clear view on the Uniform Civil Code. Attacking the Congress, he said that under Article 44, our Constitution talks about Uniform Civil Code. This could not become a reality in the country because the first Prime Minister of India (Jawaharlal Nehru) brought the Muslim Personal Law. 

Shah said that I ask the Congress that in a secular country, should there not be one law for all communities? He further said that Congress cannot bring UCC because it cannot rise above the politics of appeasement. Our government has implemented UCC in Uttarakhand. In the same way, we will implement the Uniform Civil Code in all BJP-ruled states.

After this statement of Union Minister Amit Shah, a discussion has intensified in the political and legal circles whether the plan to implement UCC as a central law has been dropped?

In this report, let us understand in detail why Amit Shah is talking about implementing Uniform Civil Code in the states instead of making a central law?

Planning to move forward through the assembly

During the campaign for the 2022 Uttarakhand assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party had promised that if their government comes to power in the state, they will implement UCC there. After the elections, as per the promise, the CM first formed a five-member committee for UCC and implemented UCC based on its recommendations. 

Apart from this, the BJP government in Assam is also preparing to bring this bill in the assembly. A few days ago, the Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced the implementation of Uniform Civil Code in the state. Apart from this, the Rajasthan government has also announced to bring UCC in its state. 

At present, there is BJP government in UP, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Odisha, Tripura, Manipur, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh. Out of these, this law is already implemented in Goa. In such a situation, if the Bharatiya Janata Party succeeds in implementing UCC in its states too, then UCC will be implemented in a large part of the country. 

What the Constitution says about UCC

The Indian Constitution mentions the UCC in Section 44, which comes under Article 44 (Directive Principles of State Policy). This article says: “The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a Uniform Civil Code.”

This section motivates the Indian state to work towards implementing a uniform civil code for its citizens, but it is only an advice to implement a law, not a binding order. This means that the state governments are not forced to implement it, but they have to decide to adopt it.

3 Reasons why state-level initiative instead of central level 

1. Autonomy given to the states in the Constitution

Faizan Mustafa, Vice Chancellor of Chanakya National Law University (CNLU), Patna and a legal expert, believes that state governments have the right to implement UCC. For example, if the state of Uttarakhand wants to implement UCC in its state, it has this right. It can take this decision keeping in mind its local conditions, i.e. the needs of the people of the state and the characteristics of the society.

In simple words, the Constitution has given the state governments the right to implement the Uniform Civil Code, but it is not a legal requirement. If any state wants to implement it, it has the right to take this step keeping in view its local situation and the conditions of the society.

Speaking to a news channel, Faizan Mustafa said, “If a state government like Uttarakhand decides to implement UCC, it will be applicable within the state, but implementing it across the country is a different matter.

States have the power to make laws in their legislatures that fall within their jurisdiction.” According to him, states have a kind of “partial autonomy” in this matter, and it may be an appropriate way for governments to first implement the UCC gradually under a BJP-ruled government, and then see what its impact is.

2. Taking care of social and religious diversity

Keeping in mind the diverse social and religious structure of India, the process of implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) has always been a sensitive issue. There are strong feelings of opposition to this, especially in the Muslim community. Faizan Mustafa believes that religious aspects should not be touched first in the UCC.

He said, if there is a need to change a religious system under the UCC, then it should be implemented after first discussing it within that community. This means that any change in religious reform or legislature should be done with a broad consensus within that society.

Amit Shah’s statement also indicates that the central government does not want the UCC to be implemented all over the country at once, as this can increase social tension. Therefore, giving the states the right to implement this law according to their situation can be helpful in building consensus among local communities.

3. Reference to Hindu Law Code 1941

Whenever a proposal comes up for the implementation of a uniform civil code in India, memories of the efforts made in the past are refreshed. In the year 1941, some reforms were proposed in the Hindu Personal Law in the form of the Hindu Law Code, in which an attempt was made to improve the property rights of women and the rights of widowed women. However, this law could not be passed at that time, because the Hindu society considered it against its traditions and culture. But at the same time it was understood that it is not possible to implement such reforms without consensus within the society.

This history helps us understand that the question of Uniform Civil Code is a sensitive and complex issue, which cannot be implemented in a hurry in any society.

What will be the benefit of UCC implemented in the states?

The logic given in Amit Shah ‘s statement is that if UCC is implemented in a few states first and its results are positive, then it can be implemented in the rest of the country as well. Faizan Mustafa also believes that after the effective implementation of UCC in a few states, its effects can be studied and if it succeeds, then it can be considered for nationwide implementation.

Moreover, this approach also gives states the freedom to take decisions in their local socio-cultural context. If a state implements UCC keeping in mind its social structure and religious sensibilities, it can give better results, and if there is a need to implement it at the national level, then it will create a strong basis for it.

Is it possible to implement UCC in India?

India is a country where people of different religions, castes and communities live together. It is very difficult to integrate a uniform civil code in such a diverse and vast country. Take the Hindu society for example. People of this religion may follow personal laws but they also follow the customs and rituals of different communities in different states.

At the same time, Muslim personal laws are also not the same. For example, take the Bohra Muslim community, people of this community follow the principles of Hindu laws in matters of inheritance. Not only this, there are different laws in different states in matters of property and inheritance. 

Christian majority states of Northeast India (Nagaland, Mizoram) have personal law. In these states, people follow their customs and not religion. Alok Prasanna Kumar, Fellow of Vidhi Center for Legal Policy, while talking to ABP said, “The biggest question is that while implementing UCC, which principle will you apply – Hindu, Muslim or Christian?”

He said the UCC will have to address some basic questions, such as what will be the norms of marriage and divorce in the country? What will be the adoption process and its consequences? What will be the right to alimony and division of property in cases of divorce? Finally, what will be the rules for property inheritance?

What is Uniform Civil Code?

Article 44 of Part 4 of the Indian Constitution mentions the Uniform Civil Code. It states that an attempt will be made to implement a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens of the country throughout the territory of India. This code refers to the law related to social issues which will be equally applicable to all communities in relation to marriage, divorce, maintenance, child adoption and inheritance etc. 

Is BJP’s UCC incomplete in Uttarakhand?

Although Uttarakhand has become the first state to implement UCC after Goa, this law has been implemented here keeping the tribal communities out. The reason for not including the tribal communities in it is the protection of their culture, tradition and autonomy. However, this step may be considered incomplete and controversial by some people, because all sections of the society should get equal legal rights.

In fact, Uttarakhand has a significant number of tribal communities, and their culture, traditions and lifestyle are different from others. Tribal communities follow traditional customs and cultural laws, which are often different from the general civil laws of the state. In such a situation, keeping in mind the peculiarities and traditions of the tribal community, they have not been fully included under the UCC.

Tribal communities often have autonomy in traditional marriages, land rights, and other social matters, and outside interference in these matters could threaten their identity and traditions. Therefore, the state government has decided to keep tribal community matters out of the UCC. 

There will be a provision in its rules under which any member of the tribal community in the state can choose to come under the purview of UCC through self-declaration.

What do ‘common’ and ‘uniform’ mean?

While talking to the media, law expert Professor Faizan Mustafa explained the details of UCC and said that “Common” would mean that it should be the same for everyone. ‘Uniform’ means that there should be the same law for people who are of the same type.

He said that the right to equality does not say that there should be the same laws in the whole country, it says that people of different kinds should be treated equally. That is, there should be the same law for people who are similar, that is, Article 14 talks about the right to equality, it says that there should be one law for all the people who are similar within a class. 

Mustafa explained by giving an example that “If there is a professor, then the professor and assistant professor will not be the same. They are different. The salary of both will not be the same. The professor will teach very little and the assistant professor will teach a lot but the salary of the professor will be more because there is one class of professors, there is another class of assistant professors… Having different laws for those who are different is a part of the right to equality, one law for those who are the same.”

Faizan further says, “If Common Civil Code was just a word, then it would be a law for everyone, but because the word ‘uniform’ is also included in it, it means that there is scope for classification, that there can be different laws for different people.”

Meaning of civil

According to lawyer Anand Yadav, “civil” means a case related to personal rights and claims. When a person claims money from another or wants to resolve any other personal dispute, it is seen under civil law . For example, if you borrowed money from me and did not return it, then it would be a civil case, which will be resolved in court. Civil cases usually do not result in jail, but compensation is given.

Meaning of the code

“Code” does not necessarily mean a single law, but rather a collection or group of several different laws. For example, the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is a criminal code that contains laws dealing with crimes such as murder, robbery, etc., but that does not mean that all criminal laws are in one place. Different laws can be combined together to form a code, such as the Hindu Code Bill, which contains different laws related to Hindu marriage, guardianship, and adoption.

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