New Delhi: Ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament starting July 20, top lawyers of the Congress on Saturday discussed the controversial Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to firm up the party’s view on the issue.
According to party insiders, the UCC is not about black and white but involves a plural Indian society, diverse cultural identities, notions of justice, inclusiveness, freedom of choice and most importantly a broad internal consensus within the country. The lawyers who attended an “informal” discussion over the UCC included former union ministers P Chidambaram, Salman Khurshid and Manish Tewari, besides Abhishek Manu Singhvi, KTS Tulsi, Vivek Tankha and L Hanumantaiah. All of these senior Supreme Court advocates.
Though the issue has been discussed within the party circles since Prime Minister Narendra Modi floated the proposal during a rally in Madhya Pradesh in June, the select group of lawyers affiliated to the grand old party met for the first time to discuss the proposed legislation. “It was an informal discussion. We will wait for the draft,” said Tulsi after the meeting.
His comments were in line with the Congress stand that the party will come out with a formal response only when the government presents a draft of the proposed legislation. The UCC which had been discussed during a Congress Parliamentary Party meeting chaired by its chief Sonia Gandhi on July 1, again came up for discussion on Saturday when the former party chief reviewed the party’s preparations for the coming Parliament session.
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As the lawyers discussed the UCC inside the Congress headquarters, the issue also found mention at another meeting of north-eastern region leaders that party chief Mallikarjun Kharge chaired.
“The northeastern people have a serious concern over the UCC because of the plurality of the states in that region. The majority of the northeastern states have a huge tribal population, their own customs and their own religious rituals. The north-eastern states have their own concerns about UCC and they shared that during the meeting,” said AICC in charge of organization KC Venugopal.
According to party insiders, the broad view within the party is that the UCC is being pushed by PM Modi to benefit the BJP electorally in the coming assembly polls in Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and later in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. In a press note published on June 14, 2023, the 22nd Law Commission of India notified its intention to examine the Uniform Civil Code. This was being done, the press note clarified, on a reference sent by the Ministry of Law and Justice.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said “This latest attempt represents the Modi Government’s desperation for a legitimate justification of its continuing agenda of polarization and diversion from its glaring failures. The Law Commission has produced an enviable body of work over the decades on numerous issues of national importance. It should be mindful of that legacy and remember that the interests of the nation are distinct from the political ambitions of the BJP.”
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