Uttarakhand government on Friday announced a drafting committee to implement the much-debated Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state.
According to an official notification, the committee will be headed by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai while retired Delhi High Court judge Pramod Kohli, ex-state chief secretaries Shatrughan Singh, Manu Gaud and Surekha Dangwal will be remaining members of it.
In the notification, the Dhami-led government stated that the panel will examine and report on all relevant laws governing the individual civil affairs of all citizens residing in Uttarakhand.
They will give a detailed report on all applicable laws relating to marriage, divorce, property rights, succession, adoption, maintenance and protection, etc.
Earlier today, Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Sing Dhami confirmed the state government has taken a decision to implement the UCC in the state.
“We have taken a decision to implement the Uniform Civil Code in the state. Uttarakhand will be the second state after Goa to implement this. We will bring UCC for the people irrespective of them being from any religion and sect,” he said in Champawat.
Back on May 2, Himachal Pradesh CM Jairam Thakur also announced that the UCC will be brought into the state soon.
However, a debate over the UCC has sparked in several states of the country, recently Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma also backed it by saying that the UCC should be implemented in the greater interest of Muslim women otherwise polygamy would continue.
Meanwhile, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) termed it ‘an unconstitutional and anti-minorities move’, and called the rhetoric for bringing the law an attempt by Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Central governments to divert the attention from the concerns of inflation, economy, and rising unemployment.
Notably, in Bharatiya Janata Party’s 2019 Lok Sabha election manifesto, BJP promised the implementation of UCC if it comes to power.
