Yet to be known whether Uniform Civil code ‘affects human rights’ or not, says Khurshid

|HT|

In the midst of the ongoing controversy over the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, senior Congress leader and advocate Salman Khurshid said on Monday it is yet to be determined whether the code ‘affects human rights’ or not. “Whether it is Uniform Civil Code or anything else, it must meet the requirements of the Indian Constitution,” he said. “It has to be examined whether UCC affects human rights,” the politician said. Khurshid’s statement comes at a time when the Uttarakhand government formed a 5-member panel to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the hill state. "We have taken the decision to implement the Uniform Civil Code in the state. Uttarakhand will be the second state after Goa to implement this," Dhami said. "We will bring the UCC for the people… it would be effective for every citizen irrespective of their religion," Dhami said while addressing a gathering in Champawat assembly where a by-election is due tomorrow.

The chief minister of Himachal Pradesh Jai Ram Thakur has also expressed the state government’s interest in implementing UCC. The Uniform Civil Code is a "good step" and the state government “is open to implement it” but will not rush with it, he said earlier in April. Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said last month that the government was mulling the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code in the state.

UCC essentially refers to a common set of laws governing personal matters such as marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance and succession for all citizens, irrespective of religion. Currently, different laws regulate these aspects for adherents of different religions and a UCC is meant to do away with these personal laws.

Goa is the only state in India that has a Uniform Civil Code regardless of religion, gender or caste. It has been following the Portuguese Civil Code 1867, which is also called Uniform Civil Code. After its liberation from Portuguese rule, the UCC survived through Section 5(1) of the Goa, Daman and Diu Administration Act, 1962.

The saffron camp has expressed its support for the implementation of the UCC across the nation. In its 2019 Lok Sabha election manifesto, the BJP had promised a UCC saying that gender equality would not be possible without it. The UCC has been labelled as “anti-minority” by several critics.

(Except for the headline and the pictorial description, this story has not been edited by THE DEN staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)