Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 30: The first test of the much talked-about Uniform Civil Code (UCC), though only at a state level, is expected to be taken up in Uttarakhand soon.
The draft of the proposed UCC for Uttarakhand is “complete and will soon be submitted to the state government,” Justice (retd) Ranjana Prakash Desai, the chairman of the committee of experts, said on Friday.
Considering that the Uttarakhand draft was also discussed with the members of the Law Commission, this could form the basis of the UCC to be drafted at the national level, official sources said.
The Uttarakhand government had constituted the committee of experts under Ms Desai, the retired Supreme Court judge, in May last year, to examine the various existing laws regulating personal civil matters of the residents of Uttarakhand and to prepare draft law or laws or suggest changes in existing laws on such subjects as marriage, divorce, property rights, succession, inheritance, adoption, maintenance, custody, and guardianship. A notification in this regard was issued on May 27, 2022, and the terms of reference were notified on June 10 last year.
Ms Desai said the panel had drafted the code taking into account all shades of opinions and looking into various statutes and uncodified laws, including the statutory framework in select countries. Besides, the Committee has tried to understand the “finer nuances” of the various customary practices that prevail in different parts of Uttarakhand.
“It gives me immense pleasure to inform you that the drafting of the proposed uniform civil code for Uttarakhand is now complete,” Ms Desai told a press conference. “The report of the committee along with the draft code would soon be printed and submitted to the government of Uttarakhand,” she added. Ms Desai, however, refused to share the details of the draft UCC or the committee’s report, saying it has to be first submitted to the state government.
“Our emphasis is to ensure gender equality, with keeping women, children and disabled persons in focus. We have tried to bring everyone on an equal footing with elimination of arbitrariness and discrimination,” she said.
Ms Desai said the committee had studied the existing laws in various countries including Muslim countries but refused to share their names. “We have seen everything, studied personal laws. We have also studied the Law Commission’s report. If you read our draft you will feel that the committee has considered everything,” she said.
The draft, if implemented, “will strengthen the secular fabric of our country.” Ms Desai said the committee had held its first meeting on July 4 last year in Delhi and since then, the Committee has met 63 times. A sub-committee was constituted last year to elicit public opinion through written submissions as well as by public dialogue programmes, she said.
Ms Desai said the sub-committee began its public outreach programme from the border tribal village Mana and visited 40 different places in the Uttarakhand covering all the districts, which culminated in a public discussion in Delhi on June 14 with participation from the residents of Uttarakhand staying in the Delhi and national capital region.
The sub-committee met 143 times in Dehradun and other places, she added. Besides, Ms Desai said the committee also interacted with the representatives of political parties, state statutory commissions as well as with leaders of various religious denominations. “While the sub-committee interacted with about 20,000 people during the public consultation exercise, the committee received altogether 2.31 lakh written submissions from people,” she added.
Ms Desai said the Uttarakhand UCC committee also held an interaction with the chairperson of the Law Commission and its members on June 2 in Delhi. “The chairperson of the Law Commission of India had requested for an interaction with the members of the Expert Committee. This interaction was held on June 2 wherein members as well as chairpersons of both the Law Commission and the Expert Committee were present,” she said.
