Are we ready for UCC (Uniform civil code)?

 

Uniform civil code is defined in our constitution under Article 44 of Directive Principles of State Policy stating that the state shall endeavor to secure for its citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. Its only objective is one law one nation. UCC includes formulating laws related to marriage, divorce, relationship, inheritance and guardianship such that they do not discriminate any citizen of the country irrespective of its religion, sex, gender or sexual orientation. At present laws related to marriages, divorce, inheritance is different for different religions and are regulated by Personal Laws such as Hindu Code Bills, Muslim Personal Laws, etc.

According to historians, the origin of UCC can be traced back to the Romans. They governed themselves based on a civil law, not holy text. The Mesopotamians did the same, they followed a code of Ur-Namo, apparently the oldest law code in history, it encouraged people to think of themselves as one family with one set of rules. The US constitution is another example. American law treats all citizens as equal and all of them must follow the same law. But that's not the case in India. It is a diverse and vast country a conscious chaos of religions, ethnicities, customs and social structures. At the time of independence, to unify such a country under one law was seen as a fiendishly tough task. There was immense opposition to uniform civil code from both Islamic fundamentalists and orthodox Hindus. They wanted 'Shariya' and "Shastra's" to determine personal laws. They feared that UCC would open Pandora's Box, it would diminish their authority so they called it a threat to religious freedom.

Thus, laws in India are based on religion, caste, culture and even geography when it comes to property and inheritance right. For example, In North-East India States like Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram, they are not governed by mainstream laws. They make their own personal laws based on their customs and practices no matter how Archaic they may be. Taking religion, certain Personal laws for Muslims in India are determined by Quran they are mostly related to marriage, divorce, inheritance and custody of children. A woman's right to alimony is determined as per sharia, so women's right to inheritance of property, even her right to adopt a child and all of this leaves woman at the mercy of the Muslim personal law-board, a body mostly run by men and influenced by clerics.

From Dr. B.R Ambedkar to Jawaharlal Nehru they all wanted to get rid of personal laws and bring a civil code. But it was very unfortunate that uniform civil code could not be introduced immediately after independence of India. Ambedkar Ji, in fact was the strongest proponent of it and here is what he said in constitutional assembly debate. “I, personally do not understand why religion should be given this vast expensive jurisdiction to cover whole of life and to prevent the legislature from encroaching upon that field. After all, what are we having this liberty to reform our social system, which is so full of inequities and discriminations which conflict with our fundamental rights. It is therefore quite impossible for anybody to conceive that the personal law shall be excluded from the jurisdiction of state.” Nehru agreed Ambedkar but he feared a civil Strife he felt Muslims who stayed back in India, after partition will feel insecure if the civil code is to be introduced immediately. So, he said the reform had his extreme sympathy but time was not right for it. He wanted to prepare the ground for such reforms and introduction of Hindu code bills was one method for preparing such grounds which abolished certain personal laws and this was the 1st step towards bringing a uniform civil code.

In 1980s, UCC again gained momentum, courtesy to The Shah Bano Case. A woman appealed for Justice after being divorced by her husband. She had been married for 40 years, then the husband left her and refused to pay alimony. According to Muslim laws, she was entitled to only 3 months of alimony. Only 3 months after 40 years of marriage so she went to the Supreme Court, the court ruled in a favor. Shah Bano was awarded maintenance. Muslim clerics and politicians protested they said this verdict was in conflict of Islamic law. The Muslim Women Protection Act,1986 was brought by Rajiv Gandhi government which overturned the Supreme Court's verdict. It restricted the rights of Muslim women to alimony only for 90 days. As a result of this the Supreme Court suggested a common civil code which will help national Integration by removing desperate loyalties to laws that have conflicting ideologies.

In election after election the BJP promised it in 2019 manifesto and promised to include the best provisions of different personal laws from different religions, they have been in power for 9 years they still say they are committed to UCC but they have not been able to implement it yet.

Critics say this is a move against secularism that it would target India's Muslims. The political and religious groups even tribal communities from the northeast are against it they say it is a conspiracy to impose majority Hindu view over minority.

The proponents of UCC do not agree, they say it will only bring uniformity uplift women and oppressed religious communities. They point towards the state of Goa it's the only Indian state with uniform civil code which was introduced by Portuguese and it is still in force.

There are many Islamic countries that have reformed personal law to check their misuse like Morocco Turkey, Tunisia, Egypt & Jordan. They have all codified personal laws as per their constitution. Turkey and Tunisia banned polygamy. Jordan and Egypt banned triple talak. If Muslim countries can reform personal laws, if Western democracies can follow a common civil code, then why we Indians living under laws passed before independence. This question is more legal than political. It's not that there aren't orthodox practices in other religions. There are biases in personal laws of every faith in India. For example, laws pertaining to succession among Hindus are unequal, laws pertaining to inheritance among Christians are lopsided, even Sikhs Jains and Parsi's are governed by same laws as Hindus no matter how distinct their practices and cultures are. It is time to put an end to all of this and unite India under one law well it makes sense all the sense but it remains controversial because of its misuse by religious forces & its misinterpretation by politicians. After seven long decades of independence, it is the right time to build consensus, bring experts from all communities and faith together, draw from the best of their traditions and practices make them applicable for modern times and unite them under one civil code. Jai Hind.

— Team Yuva Aaveg

(Akhileshwar Maurya)

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