UCC will destabilize India, demolish diversity and create chaos in society: Moily warns Modi

News Network
July 5, 2023

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New Delhi, July 5: Amid the raging debate over the Uniform Civil Code, senior Congress leader and former law minister M Veerappa Moily on Wednesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Law Commission and all political leaders not to open the "Pandora's box" on personal laws and "create chaos" in the society.

He also alleged that it was an issue that was intended to divide the society, destabilise the country and demolish the diversity enjoyed in Indian society.

In a statement, Moily underlined that Article 25 provides for the Right to Freedom of Religion.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently given a public thrust to Uniform Civil Code (UCC). Even though the Constitution of India makes a mention of the UCC, the founding fathers of the Constitution in the Constituent Assembly had chosen not to make it mandatory, as it involves the diversity of Indian society," said Moily, who was the law minister in the UPA-II government from May 2009 to May 2011.

Uniformity or commonality of the civil code for all regions and cultures of India is a different matter, he argued. 

"It would entail breaking the promise made to Nagas and Mizos to not interfere in their customs and could feed secessionist sentiments that are active to varying degrees in the region," Moily said.

He added that this will have repercussions not only for minorities such as Muslims, Christians, it will also have substantial effect on Sikhs, Jains, Buddhist and hundreds of tribes and among various sects in Hindus such as Aliyasantana in Dakshina Kannada in Karnataka and Marumakkathayam in Kerala.

"As expected, UCC is envisaged as a Muslim issue, forgetting other diversities prevailing in the country," he alleged.

Moily noted that the 21st Law Commission of India had declared that the UCC is neither necessary nor desirable.

He said that the Constitution bench of the Supreme Court had already framed seven questions of law linked to religious freedom, rights and practices in the Sabarimala case. 

The first of the seven questions is what is the scope and ambit of Right to Freedom of Religion under Article 25 of the Constitution, he pointed out and noted that the said reference is still pending in the Supreme Court.

The 22nd Law Commission of India has rushed to issue a public notice for a fresh debate on the Uniform Civil Code, he said.

"The statement of the prime minister at the most may be a platitude in the meeting of the BJP party and may be a part of the BJP manifesto for the forthcoming Lok Sabha election of 2024," Moily said.

Neither any state nor the next Parliament can rush to the UCC legislation in the absence of a full-fledged report of the 22nd Law Commission or the judgment of the Supreme Court which had framed seven questions of law, he asserted.

The right to preserve one's religious identities through personal laws cannot be annulled by a premature proclamation of the prime minister, the senior Congress leader said.

He said that it should not be forgotten that the report of the 21st Law Commission of India will have to be debated and the Supreme Court should also come out with its verdict. 

"All the debates which are taking place now are premature, short-sighted and tend to create hatred in the society. Such debates are also intended to sabotage the concept of secularism which has always been upheld by the founding fathers of the Constitution," Moily said.

"I appeal to the prime minister of India, the Law Commission and all the political leaders not to open up the Pandora's box on personal laws and create chaos in the society which is intended to divide the society and destabilise the country and to demolish the diversity enjoyed in the Indian society," he said.

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 matters.

The Law Commission had on June 14 initiated a fresh consultation process on UCC by seeking views from stakeholders, including public and recognised religious organisations, on the politically sensitive issue.

Addressing a gathering of party workers in Bhopal last week, Prime Minister Modi had made a strong pitch for the UCC, saying that the Constitution calls for equal rights for all citizens.

Modi had also said the opposition is using the issue of UCC to mislead and provoke the Muslim community.

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News Network
October 25,2024

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The accused wife and the victim husband

 

Udupi, Oct 25: A seemingly natural death has unraveled into a heart-wrenching case of betrayal and murder in Udupi’s Marne village. 

Balakrishna (44), who had been battling fever and severe illness for nearly a month, succumbed to his condition on October 20, despite extensive treatment at multiple hospitals. 

Diagnosed with jaundice, he was under care at KMC Hospital in Manipal, Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru, NIMHANS Hospital in Bengaluru, and Victoria Hospital. But his symptoms persisted, and he was brought home on October 19, only to pass away at 3:30 am the next morning.

A complaint filed by his grieving brother, Ramakrishna (42), has now transformed Balakrishna's case into an alleged murder investigation. According to Ramakrishna, his brother’s wife, Pratima, had been in a relationship with Dileep from Hirgan. Allegedly, frustrated by Balakrishna's interference in her relationship, Pratima conspired with Dileep to eliminate him.

The complaint suggests that Pratima and Dileep plotted to gradually poison Balakrishna, lacing his meals with a toxic substance that steadily worsened his health. 

In the early hours of October 20, Dileep allegedly visited the home, where he and Pratima are accused of suffocating Balakrishna with a bedsheet, ending his life in a final act of betrayal. 

The Ajekar police have now registered a murder case, transforming Balakrishna's tragic death into a haunting investigation. They also have managed to arrest the victim’s wife and her boyfriend. 

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News Network
October 29,2024

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At least 60 people, including children, have been killed in Israeli strikes on several areas in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley, the Lebanese Health Ministry says.

The ministry said at least 58 people were also wounded in the attacks on 12 areas in the Bekaa Valley on Monday.

Of the 60 killed, at least 16 deaths were recorded in al-Alaq, west of Baalbek city, the ministry added.

The casualty figures were preliminary and are expected to rise as rescue efforts were still ongoing, according to to the ministry.

Baalbek governor Bachir Khodr denounced the attacks on the area as the "most violent" since the start of the Israeli aggression.

Israel has been targeting Lebanon since October 2023, when it launched a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip.

Hezbollah has been responding to the aggression with numerous retaliatory operations, including one with a hypersonic ballistic missile, targeting the occupied Palestinian territories.

Since late September, Israel has escalated its strikes against Hezbollah, killing its leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and a number of its senior figures.

At least 2,710 people have been killed by Israeli fire, and 12,592 others wounded since the clashes began last year, the health ministry says.

The Lebanese resistance movement has vowed to keep up its operations against Israel as long as the Israeli regime continues its Gaza war, which has so far killed at least 43,020 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

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News Network
October 25,2024

Udupi, Oct 25: A team of police from Udupi apprehended a Non-Resident Indian (NRI) at Kannur International Airport, Kerala, after he had been absconding overseas since 2019. 

Ashmath Ali (35) originally arrested on charges of recording a video of unnatural acts, had been out on bail granted by the second ACJ and JMFC court of Udupi on September 6, 2019.

Despite 18 arrest warrants issued in his name, Ali managed to evade authorities for years, frequently traveling abroad. 

Acting on a tip-off, sleuths from Kaup police station intercepted him as he landed at Kannur International Airport on October 21, marking the end of his prolonged evasion from Indian law enforcement. 

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