Ministry seeks law panel’s opinion on uniform civil code

The Union Law Ministry has asked the Law Commission to examine in detail all issues pertaining to the Uniform Civil Code and submit a report to the government. The government has clarified that a decision on the future course of action would be taken on the basis of the Law Commission report. If it is required in the larger interest of the country, the government has clarified that it will hold consultations with various stakeholders on the issue.

Constitutional provision regarding UCC:

Article 44 of the Constitution says that there should be a Uniform Civil Code. According to this article, “The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India”. Since, the Directive Principles are only guidelines, it is not mandatory to use them.

What is uniform civil code?

Uniform civil Code is a proposal to have a generic set of governing laws for every citizen without taking into consideration the religion.

Current situation:

Currently, there are personal laws based on the scriptures and customs of each major religious community. They are separate from the public law and are applied on issues like-

• Marriage.
• Divorce.
• Inheritance.
• Adoption and maintenance.

Why it is difficult to have a UCC?

India being a secular country guarantees its minorities the right to follow their own religion, culture and customs under Article 29 and 30. But implementing a Uniform Code will hamper India’s secularism.

Discussion on Uniform civil code Click here