Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Tuesday announced the formation of a committee to prepare the draft of Uniform Civil Code (UCC).
If Gujarat implements the UCC, it will become the second state after Uttarakhand to bring it — both the states are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Goa has had the UCC since the beginning as the law was introduced there by the Portuguese colonial ruler and was continued after its merger with India. The Goan UCC is also in effect in the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
Patel announced that a five-member committee, chaired by former Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai, would prepare the draft of UCC and submit the report in 45 days. Previously, Desai had chaired the committee that prepared the UCC draft for Uttarakhand.
The idea behind the UCC is to have same civil laws for everyone irrespective of their religion. Currently, civil affairs are governed by religious-specific laws. Critics of the arrangements have said that some personal laws are unfair to certain sections, such as women, and there needs to be rationalisation. However, critics of the UCC have said that standardisation could harm the customs of communities.
Moreover, in case of the Uttarakhand UCC, there has been criticism of certain provisions, such as the mandatory registration of live-in relationships. If live-in partners do not register themselves with the authorities, they face a fine and even jail. Critics have said that the provision has essentially criminalised live-in relationships.
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Gujarat sets up committee to prepare Uniform Civil Code’s draft, says CM Bhupendra Patel
