Context

• The Uttarakhand government had constituted the Justice Ranjan Desai Committee to draft the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).
• Recently this committee has submitted the draft report to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.

 Key Points

• This report is given in four sections and its title is 'Fostering Equality Through Uniformity' .
• The 'Goddess of Justice' on the cover page of this report is not blindfolded. This means that the law will now look at everyone equally.
• The draft report of the Uniform Civil Code is in Hindi and English.
• Its first section contains the report of the expert committee while the second section contains the draft code.
• The third section of the report contains details of the discussions with stakeholders and the fourth section contains the draft code.
• The Uniform Civil Code will provide a legal framework for uniform marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance laws for all citizens in the state irrespective of their religion.
• After its implementation, Uttarakhand will become the first state in the country to adopt Uniform Civil Code after independence.
• It is noteworthy that Uniform Civil Code has been in force in Goa since the days of Portuguese rule.
• Following independence from Portuguese rule in 1961, Goa retained its common family law, known as the Goa Civil Code.

What is Uniform Civil Code?

• Uniform Civil Code is mentioned in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution.
• It is a part of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP).
• According to Article 44, “The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India.”
• It is noteworthy that the Directive Principles are not legally enforceable, but guide the state in policy making.

Benefits of Uniform Civil Code

• Secularism will be strengthened and national unity will be encouraged.
• Gender equality will be promoted.
• Ancient practices can be modernised.
• Simplification of law and order will be possible.

Challenges

• Existence of diversity of personal laws.
• Antagonistic attitude of religious and minority groups.
• Lack of consensus.

What steps should be taken?

• This issue should be resolved from the constitutional perspective.
• Discussions with stakeholders
• The need to adopt a balanced approach
• To address cultural differences, emphasis should be placed on unity and uniformity.

IMPORTANT FACTS FOR EXAM

Important cases related to Uniform Civil Code

• 1985 - Shah Bano vs Mohammad Ahmed Khan case
• 1995 - Sarala Mudgal vs Union of India case
• 2017 - Shayara Bano vs Union of India case