UCC: Do it, don’t use it to polarise society

It is not known why the government has again asked the Law Commission to examine the proposal for a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) for the country. Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju has belatedly named the members of the 22nd Law Commission and said that it would examine the issue in detail. The Modi government had during its first tenure sought the views of the Commission on the matter. The Commission had said then that a UCC was “neither necessary nor desirable” at this stage and that the issue was “vast” and its “potential repercussions untested”. In view of the history of the debate on the UCC since Independence, another reference to the Law Commission is unnecessary. Nor need the Law Commission’s view be taken as the final word on the matter since the UCC involves many issues other than legal. The government can introduce legislation in parliament to enact the UCC, if it really desires to implement it.

The reference to the Law Commission comes after moves on the UCC by two BJP-ruled states where Assembly elections are due shortly. The BJP has promised to implement the UCC in Himachal Pradesh and to set up a committee for it in Gujarat. Uttarakhand has set up an experts’ committee on the matter. Article 44 of the Constitution requires the State to endeavour to secure a UCC for all citizens and so there is no doubt that it a necessary and desirable goal. The government has also told the Supreme Court that framing laws is the parliament’s prerogative and no outside authority can issue it a direction to do so. This was after the Supreme Court had sought its response on a petition seeking a direction on framing a UCC.

The BJP seems to be stirring up the UCC issue only with an eye on the impending Assembly elections and the 2024 general election. The moves that are being made now are intended to keep the proposal alive and to make it a contentious issue to be used to polarise the electorate rather than to bring in a UCC. The court petition, for instance, was filed by a BJP leader. More announcements and moves will be made in the coming months, but without final resolution of the matter. There are some sections in the country, especially among the minorities, that are opposed to a UCC. The opposition from them will make the issue more contentious and work to the advantage of the BJP. The UCC is projected as a Hindutva project, it is not; it is sought to be made out that only Muslims object to it and so the making of a UCC would be Hindu triumph over Muslims, it is not. The UCC must be seen as a desirable national goal. That will make it acceptable to all sections of society.