New Delhi: As Uttarakhand works to implement Uniform Civil Code (UCC), Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday and said a common code will soon be implemented in the state, even as he denied having any discussion with the PM on the topic. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Dhami said he has invited the PM to visit Uttarakhand.
He also met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi late last night. Speculations are rife that the Uttarakhand UCC draft that will be submitted by the expert committee to the state government may become a template for the Centre's law.
The chief minister said he also discussed the issue of assistance for the people affected in the Joshimath, Char Dham Yatra, and the increase in Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection in the state among other issues. However, when asked whether the UCC was also a topic of discussion, Dhami evaded a direct reply by saying the PM is already aware of all the details.
"He knows all about the provisions of UCC. It is his thought that UCC should be implemented in the country," Dhami said. He said the state government has not received a complete draft of the report on the code yet.
"We will bring it (UCC) soon, we will not delay it, nor will we do anything in a hurry so that there are shortcomings..." he said. Asked if Tribal groups will be exempted from the common code, the chief minister said the committee has reached out to different tribal groups in the state.
Commenting on his meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah, Dhami said they discussed the Char Dham yatra, the law and order situation in the state, and preparedness for natural disasters in view of the arrival of the monsoon. In its manifesto for the 2022 assembly elections in the state, BJP had promised to bring a UCC.
Implementation of a UCC has been part of BJP election manifestos and Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing BJP workers in Bhopal last month made a strong push for it, asking how can the country function with dual laws that govern personal matters, and accused the Opposition of using the issue to "mislead and provoke" the Muslim community. Uttarakhand is already in the process of implementing its common code.
The UCC formulates a single law for the country that will be applicable to all religious communities on marriage, divorce, alimony, child custody and inheritance. Presently, the communities abide by their personal laws.
Dhami said that the UCC draft will be submitted by expert committee very soon. "The committee has taken the suggestions from more than 2.35 lakh intellectuals and experts as well as religious and other organisations. All these suggestions are being compiled in the draft. Uttarakhand will be the first state to implement UCC," he said.
A parliamentary standing committee on law and justice held a meeting on UCC on Monday. BJP MLA Sushil Modi stressed on excluding the tribals from the Northeast and other regions from the purview of UCC while the opposition questioned the reason behind bringing the issue ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
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