UCC draft approved by Uttarakhand Cabinet, set to be tabled in Assembly.

To end the social, legal, religious  and political discrimination between Hindus and Muslims….

Uttarakhand Cabinet approves UCC draft report, Bill likely to be tabled in assembly on Feb 6.

The special session of the Assembly has been convened especially to pass the legislation on the UCC and make it an Act. The cabinet approval of the draft was needed for its introduction in the Assembly.

Ruchira Pathak | HENB | Dehradun | Feb 4, 2024:: The BJP ruled Uttarakhand State Cabinet approved the report on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) during a cabinet meeting held at the Chief Minister’s residence under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, news agency ANI reported.

With the cabinet’s approval to the UCC draft report the government likely to present the UCC Bill during the Uttarakhand Assembly session on February 6. A special four-day session of the Uttarakhand Assembly has already been convened from February 5-8. The special session of the Assembly has been convened especially to pass the legislation on the UCC and make it an Act. The cabinet approval of the draft was needed for its introduction in the Assembly.

Once implemented, Uttarakhand will become the first Indian state after independence to adopt the UCC.

Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami said on Sunday, “In today’s cabinet meeting, a proposal has been approved to present a Uniform Civil Code in the upcoming legislative Assembly session and to complete the formalities to introduce it in the form of legislation.”

The UCC drafting committee, led by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, submitted the draft to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday.

Dhami had earlier informed that 2,33,000 people gave suggestions on the UCC draft. “The draft report is about 740 pages long and is in 4 volumes…,” he had said earlier this week.

The UCC proposes uniform civil laws for all communities in the state, irrespective of caste and religion. It will provide a legal framework for uniform marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance laws for all citizens.

The report submitted by the committee recommended exempting tribal communities from the purview of the proposed legislation, prioritising women’s equality, banning practices like polygamy, and arriving at a uniform marriage age across religions.

The passage of the UCC Bill in Uttarakhand will mark the fulfillment of a major promise made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to the people of the state during the 2022 assembly polls.

While speaking at an event organised at the Mukhya Sevak Sadan at the Chief Minister’s Camp Office, Dhami said on Friday, “We promised our people to bring the UCC in Uttarakhand before the Assembly goes into session. The rollout of the UCC will be in line with a resolution adopted by the BJP.”

Better late than never. The UCC initiative of Uttarakhand BJP Govt is praiseworthy to stop the parallel Sharia code violating the civil code enforced for others.

…

__Inputs from ANI and PTI.