Towards a gender-just Uniform Civil Code, Pg17

Key Highlights:

• Union Home Minister Amit Shah stated that a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) would be implemented in all 21 BJP- and NDA-ruled states before the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
• The UCC became a significant goal for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the 1985 Shah Bano judgment.
• Uttarakhand's UCC came into force in January 2025, with Gujarat, Assam, and Madhya Pradesh awaiting Presidential assent.
• The Uttarakhand UCC is criticized for confusing uniformity with equality, imposing bureaucratic hurdles and criminal penalties, and failing to incorporate progressive reforms.

Detailed Insights:

• The Uttarakhand UCC mandates compulsory registration of live-in relationships, which critics view as surveillance rather than protection.
• It criminalizes extra-judicial dissolution of marriage with three years' punishment, which is seen as inappropriate for a civil law.
• A gender-just UCC should include enforceable economic remedies for deserted women, such as automatic maintenance orders.
• It should retain gender-specific maintenance rights for women, acknowledging social inequality within marriage.
• Mandating civil court filings for all divorces could overburden Family Courts; an administrative mechanism for mutual-consent divorces is suggested.
• Unlike the Hindu Code Bill which allowed disinheritance through wills, a UCC should protect wives and children with a minimum fixed share in property.
• A UCC must recognize women’s unpaid care and domestic labor and guarantee equitable marital property rights.
• It should codify the principle of granting maintenance and economic protection to second wives, even if the marriage is technically void.
• The Uttarakhand UCC is silent on the tax benefits reserved for Hindus via the Hindu Undivided Family (HUF), which is seen as a regressive advantage.
• Punitive measures like fines and imprisonment for non-registration of marriage, divorce, or live-in relationships are criticized for disproportionately affecting the poor.
• Concerns have been raised regarding the consultative process for UCC committees, as seen with the resignation from Maharashtra's committee.
• Democratic and transparent consultations with diverse groups, including women, Adivasis, queer, transgender people, and persons with disabilities, are deemed essential.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Uniform Civil Code (UCC): A proposed common set of laws governing personal matters like marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption for all citizens, irrespective of religion.
• Shah Bano judgment: A landmark 1985 Supreme Court ruling granting maintenance to a divorced Muslim woman, which sparked debate on personal laws and the need for a UCC.
• Hindu Undivided Family (HUF): A legal entity under Indian tax law comprising all persons lineally descended from a common ancestor, often used for tax benefits.
• Personal Laws: Laws that govern personal matters for individuals based on their religion, such as the Hindu Marriage Act, Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, and Special Marriage Act.