Uniform Civil Code Updates: Sticking to its stand that uniform civil code (UCC) is undesirable at this stage, the Congress on Saturday decided to wait for the next move of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government over the issue and noted that it will comment further if a draft bill or a report on UCC comes up.
“When there’s a draft and a discussion we will participate and examine what is proposed. As of now, all we have is the law commission public notice for responses. The Congress reiterates the statement as nothing new has happened,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Saturday.
Congress’s move came after it publicly denounce the Law Commission’s decision to again examine the UCC on a reference made by the Law Ministry and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s subsequent pitch on the issue later. The party alleged the Law Commission’s latest attempt to seek fresh public opinion on UCC represents the Narendra Modi government’s desperation for continuing with its agenda of polarisation and diversion from its failures.
The grand old party’s top leadership held its parliamentary strategy group meeting on Saturday where it was decided UCC will be among the party’s main issues to be raised during the Monsoon session of Parliament beginning July 20.
The congress is also planning to base its argument against UCC during Monday’s Parliamentary Standing Committee meeting on the consultation paper issued by the Law Commission in 2018, in which it said that such a code is “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage”, Deccan Herald reported quoting the source.
The debate over the UCC was initiated after the Law Commission had on June 14 initiated a fresh consultation process over the issue by seeking views from stakeholders, including public and recognised religious organisations, on the politically sensitive issue.
UCC Latest Updates
Mayawati supports Uniform Civil Code: A day before Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Uniform Civil Code, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Sunday said that her party is not against implementing the proposed law.
However, she hit out at BJP for “politicising” the issue and claimed that the saffron party was raking up the issue to divert the attention of the public from everyday issues.
“The implementation of UCC will strengthen the country and unite Indians. It will also develop a sense of brotherhood among people. The forceful implementation of UCC is not right, politicising this issue will create problems. The government should currently focus on issues like inflation, unemployment, education and healthcare,” the BSP chief said.
“Our party (BSP) is not against the implementation of UCC but we do not support the way BJP is trying to implement Uniform Civil Code in the country. It is not right to politicise this issue and forcefully implement UCC in the country,” she added.
Kerala Muslim Body Indicates Opposition to Uniform Civil Code: Muslim organisations appear to be staunchly against the Centre’s push for a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country, with the Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama — a Sunni-Shafi’i scholarly body — on Sunday indicating its opposition to the proposed law.
Speaking out against the UCC, Muhammad Jifri Muthukkoya, president of Samastha Kerala Jem-iyyathul Ulama, told reporters today that not just Muslims, but even other religions — Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, etc, — would not be able to accept the UCC.
He said that as far as Muslims were concerned, marriages, divorce, inheritance or succession are all part of their religion and there are certain rules and regulations which have to be followed for them to become valid.
BJP Moves to Recharge Core Voters: With the crucial Lok Sabha elections less than a year away, PM Modi earlier this week gave a strong push to a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) making it clear he plans to fulfil one of the prominent election promises that has been pending for long and hoping to recharge the party’s core constituency of voters.
Modi’s strong pitch for the UCC came as the party has fulfilled its promises of abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya which is underway,and was a part of the BJP’s “core” manifesto agenda. Now in the list of unfulfilled promises of the BJP and its ideological body Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, remains the implementation of the UCC.
Move to Divert People’s Attention?: Days after PM Modi pitched for the UCC in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal, the Congress has hit back at the government dubbing it as a “tool” to divert attention from real issues and it represents the Modi government’s desperation for a legitimate justification of its continuing agenda of polarisation.
For Himanta, UCC Keys to Consolidation of Hindu Votes: Assam is one of the few BJP states where there has been a vocal push for adopting the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma leading the charge.
Sarma stated numerous times over the past few months that UCC is the need of the hour. “No Muslim woman in the country wants her husband to have three wives. You only need to ask a Muslim woman, nobody will suggest that her husband should marry three women,” Sarma mentioned recently.
Sarma claimed that it was not a Hindu community problem, but rather an issue of Muslim mothers and sisters when a Muslim man marries more than one woman. He asserted that the UCC must be implemented for Muslim mothers and women to be respected in society following the passage of the triple talaq law.
Congress Minister in Himachal Extends Support to UCC: A first-timer Congress minister in Himachal Pradesh on Saturday extended support to UCC, but questioned the BJP over its timing.
“We have said that whenever Uniform Civil Code comes, we will support it. Congress has always contributed towards taking unity and integrity forward,” PWD Minister Vikramaditya Singh told the media.
“But the main issue at present is Manipur, which has been burning for nearly two months and is on the verge of a civil war. No action has been taken against the Manipur Chief Minister,” said Singh, the son of six-time Chief Minister late Virbhadra Singh.
Without mincing words, Singh added, “The BJP doesn’t speak of the burning issues in the country and starts a new debate to mislead the people.”
UCC Initiative to End Reservation, Says JD-U: Bihar Building Construction Minister Ashok Choudhary on Saturday said that the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code is an attempt to end the reservation in the country.
“Today the government is bringing UCC in the country. Then they will stop the reservation. They (government) will ask why Dalit, EBC, OBC are getting reservation? This should be stopped. We appeal to every person to oppose this bill. UCC is an initiative to end reservation in the country,” Choudhary said.
He said that the implementation of UCC should be opposed by every Muslim, Dalit, OBC and EBC in the country as the BJP government under this policy wants to implement one law for every person.
What is UCC?: The UCC refers to a common set of laws that are applicable to all the citizens of India that is not based on religion and dealing with marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption among other personal matters.
People privy to the development believe that pitching the issue of UCC just a year ahead of the crucial polls might prove beneficial for BJP as it hopes that it will once again give a clear message to its core voters.
As per sources, heated debates on the UCC might help the party to recharge the BJP’s core constituency.
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