"Uttarakhand is the test lab for Hindutva Iran": Karti Chidambaram after state clears UCC Bill

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram's statement on Uttarakhand has led to a major row. Taking to his social media, the Congress MP has said that the bill is nothing but a Hindu Code applicable for all.

New Delhi: A day after the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly cleared the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, Congress leader Karti Chidambaram on Thursday said that the state is the "test lab for Hindutva Iran." Taking to the social media platform, X, Karti, the son of former Union Minister P Chidambaram, said, "Uttarakhand is the test lab for Hindutva Iran."

The Uttarakhand Assembly passed the UCC Bill with a comfortable majority following a two-day discussion during a special session on Wednesday, making Uttarakhand the first state to clear the legislation. Although Goa is governed by a UCC (Portuguese Civil Code), the Assembly did not pass any law. The code was retained after its liberation in 1961. The Bill governs common law on marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance for all citizens, irrespective of their religion. The state, however, has put the Scheduled Tribes outside the purview of the code.

The Congress leader's statement comes in the face of Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami who is projecting the code as a model draft for other states to adopt at their discretion. Moreover, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi, too, registered his strong protest against UCC. The Hyderabad MP on his X handle said the Uttarakhand UCC Bill was nothing but a Hindu Code applicable for all.

"The Uttarakhand UCC Bill is nothing but a Hindu Code applicable for all. Firstly, hindu undivided family has not been touched. Why? If you want a uniform law for succession and inheritance, why are Hindus kept out of it? Can a law be uniform if it doesn't apply to majority of your state? 2. Bigamy, halala, live-in relationships have become the talking points. But no one is asking why Hindu Undivided Family has been excluded. 3. No one is asking why this was needed. According to the CM, his state faced losses of 1000 crore due to floods. 17000 hectares of agricultural land was submerged and crop losses were estimated to be over Rs 2 crore. Uttarakhand's finances are in doldrums, so Dhami feels the need to table this. 4. There are other constitutional and legal issues. Why have tribals been excluded? Can it be uniform if one community is exempt. Next, there is the question of fundamental rights," Owaisi wrote on X. "I have a right to practice my religion and culture, this Bill forces me to follow a different religion and culture. In our religion, inheritance and marriage are part of religious practice, it is a violation of Articles 25 & 29 to force us to follow a different system.

5.There is the constitutional issue of UCC. Modi govt in SC said that UCC can only be enacted by Parliament. This Bill contradicts central laws like Shariah Act, Hindu Marriage Act, SMA, ISA, etc. Without presidential assent, how will this law work? 6. A voluntary UCC already exists in the form of SMA, ISA, JJA, DVA, etc. Why make it mandatory when Ambedkar himself didn't call it mandatory?" he added. The bill contains the laws relating to marriage, divorce, succession, live-in relationships, and related matters. Among the many proposals, the Uniform Civil Code Bill makes it compulsory for live-in relationships to be registered under the law. Once the Bill is implemented, "live-in relationships" will have to get registered under the law within one month from the "date of entering into the relationship."

To live in a live-in relationship, adults will have to obtain consent from their parents. The bill also imposes a complete ban on child marriage and introduces a uniform process for divorce. The Code provides equal rights to women of all religions in their ancestral property. As per the UCC Bill, the age for marriage will be 18 for women and 21 for men in all communities. Marriage registration is mandatory in all religions and marriages without registration will be invalid.

No divorce petition will be allowed to be filed after one year of marriage. Highlighting the ceremonies for marriage, the proposed UCC Bill noted that marriage may be solemnised or contracted between a man and a woman in accordance with religious beliefs, practices, customary rites and ceremonies including but not limited to "Saptapadt", "Ashirvad", "Nikah", "Holy Union", "Anand Karaj" under the Anand Marriage Act 1909 as well as under, but not limited to, The Special Marriage Act, 1954 and Arya Marriage Validation Act, 1937. However, nothing contained in the proposed UCC Bill will be applied to the members of any Scheduled Tribes within the meaning of clause (25) of Article 366 read with Article 342 of the Constitution of India and the persons and group of persons whose customary rights are protected under Part XXI of the Constitution of India.

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