Uniform Civil Code (UCC) has come into force in Uttarakhand from Monday. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced this while launching the official portal. Uttarakhand has now become the first state in India to implement UCC (Uniform Civil Code). The date for implementation of UCC was already fixed as January 27.
Launching the UCC portal, Pushkar Singh Dhami said that ‘today is a historic day not only for Uttarakhand but for the entire country. The team has put a lot of effort into the drafting. We have fulfilled the promise made to the public. UCC is not against any religion, but will now give equal rights to women of all religions in the state. Women will be empowered through UCC. Halala practice, polygamy, child marriage will be banned.
Introducing the UCC, CM Dhami said that this law will bring uniformity in the society and fix equal rights and responsibilities for all citizens. Under the Uniform Civil Code, an attempt has been made to bring uniformity in all laws relating to personal civil matters that discriminate on the basis of caste, religion, sex etc.
The BJP had made the implementation of UCC in Uttarakhand a major poll promise in the 2022 assembly elections. In the first cabinet meeting under the leadership of Pushkar Singh Dhami after returning to the Chief Minister’s chair, the UCC proposal was approved and the formation of a committee of experts to draft it was approved.
Uttarakhand UCC will regulate marriage, divorce, succession, live-in relationships and other related matters. The UCC sets the same marriage age, grounds and procedures for divorce for men and women in all religions, while prohibiting polygamy and halala.
An expert committee was formed under the chairmanship of retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai on May 27, 2022, which prepared its report in four parts over a period of one and a half years, which was submitted on February 2. To the state government by 2024. Based on the report, the UCC Bill was passed in a special session of the Assembly on 7 February 2024 and the President also gave his assent to it a month later on 12 March 2024.
