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The Uniform Civil Code (UCC), a law that has faced long-standing criticism from the Opposition, will officially come into effect in Uttarakhand on January 27, making it the first state in independent India to put into effect such a law.

According to the state’s chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, the government has completed all preparations to implement the law, including getting approval of the rules for the implementation of the Act and training of officials concerned. The rationale given for the law is that it will bring about ‘uniformity in the society and ensure equal rights and responsibilities for all citizens.’

"UCC is just an offering made by our state in the great 'yagya' being performed by the Prime Minister to make the country a developed, organised, harmonious and self-reliant nation," PTI quoted Dhami as saying in a statement.

The BJP had made a promise to implement the Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand in the run-up to the 2022 assembly polls.These polls saw the party storming to power for a second consecutive term, something never done by any other party in the state since its creation in 2000.

According to CM Dhami, the historic mandate was because of the party's commitment to passing the UCC.

The Uniform Civil Code journey in Uttarakhand

The Uttarakhand state cabinet cleared a proposal to form an expert panel on the Uniform Civil Code in March 2022 in the first cabinet meeting after winning the assembly elections. The panel, headed by retired Supreme Court Judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, was constituted on May 27, 2022 to prepare the draft of the UCC.

The Desai committee submitted a comprehensive draft in four volumes, prepared after one and a half years of dialogue with different sections of the state's population. It was sent to the state on February 2, 2024 and just a few days later, the Uttarakhand assembly passed the UCC bill. President Droupadi Murmu gave it her assent in March 2024, nearly two years after the initial proposal.

Another expert committee was at work after that, headed by former chief secretary Shatrughna Singh. It was formed to frame the rules and regulations for the implementation of the Act. The Sinha committee submitted its report to the state government late last year.

The state cabinet gave its approval recently and authorised the chief minister to decide a date for its implementation. Dhami decided the date to be January 27, 2025, a day after the country celebrated its 76th Republic Day.

What is in the Uttarakhand UCC?

The Uniform Civil Code Act of Uttarakhand will govern and regulate the laws relating to marriage and divorce, succession, live-in relationships and related matters.

It sets equal marriageable age for men and women, grounds of divorce and procedures across all religions, and bans polygamy and 'halala'.

Doon University Vice Chancellor Surekha Dangwal, who was part of the panel that drafted the UCC and was among those who framed the rules for its implementation, described to PTI the provisions aimed at bringing about gender parity in matters of marriage, divorce and succession, treating all children as legitimate including those born of void or voidable marriages, simplifying the process of preparing a will and regulating live-in relationships as the most outstanding in the UCC. She termed gender parity across all religions as the spirit of UCC.

According to Duggal, the UCC makes registration of all marriages and live-in relationships mandatory. She also said that the government has created facilities to help people register their marriages online so that they do not have to run around government offices for it.

"Another remarkable feature of the UCC is that it treats all children as legitimate. We have in fact totally done away with the term illegitimate in the context of children," she said. The UCC also makes a special provision for defence personnel called "privileged will" which can be made both in writing or by word of mouth.

Any soldier or air force personnel engaged in an expedition or actual warfare or a mariner at sea can make a privileged will for which rules have been kept flexible.

UCC criticism

Opposition leaders have criticized the UCC, arguing that it may lead to societal division along religious lines and might be impractical and overly ambitious.
The debate surrounding the UCC extends beyond Uttarakhand, as Article 44 of the Indian Constitution advocates for a uniform civil code across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has referenced the Supreme Court's direction on the need for a common code, stressing that fulfilling the vision of the Constitution's framers remains a national goal.

Uttarakhand's implementation of the UCC is likely to set a precedent, with other states potentially following suit. The success of the law's implementation will depend on its ability to balance individual rights and social harmony.

As Uttarakhand stands at the forefront of this legal revolution, the coming weeks will offer a clearer picture of how the UCC will be received, both in the state and across India. The state's experience with the UCC will undoubtedly shape the future of personal law reform in the country.

What is the implementation process?

Shailesh Bagauli, secretary (home), stated that the government will issue two notifications: one for the implementation of the UCC and another for the rules and regulations, officially launching the UCC in the state.

Dhami had promised to implement the UCC if re-elected during the 2022 state polls. After becoming CM, he appointed a five-member committee led by Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai to draft the code, which received feedback from over 2.3 lakh people, representing nearly 10% of Uttarakhand's families.

The 740-page draft was presented to the chief minister on February 2, 2024, approved by the cabinet on February 4, tabled in the assembly on February 6, and passed the following day. Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (retd) approved the bill on February 28 and President Droupadi Murmu subsequently signed it on March 11.

Ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre to prioritise waiving loans for farmers and the middle class instead of wealthy individuals. He also demanded a nationwide law to prohibit the waiver of loans given to billionaires.

Notably, Delhi Assembly elections are scheduled for February 5 and the result will be announced on February 8. Kejriwal is seeking a third consecutive term, following AAP's landslide victory in 2020 when it won 62 out of 70 seats.

Income tax, GST rates can be cut to half

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Kejriwal criticised the central government, alleging favouritism toward the wealthy by writing off corporate loans worth thousands of crores. He claimed such practices burden ordinary citizens with excessive taxes while benefitting the rich. "Common people are paying half their salaries in taxes, while the loans of the rich are being waived. Why doesn't the central government waive home loans, car loans, or other financial burdens of ordinary citizens?" Kejriwal asked.

He emphasised that discontinuing loan waivers for billionaires could enable the government to reduce income tax and GST rates by half, double the taxable income threshold, and remove GST on essential commodities. "This is a massive scandal, and it's time to put an end to it," he said.

Kejriwal writes to PM Modi 

In his letter, Kejriwal stated, "Prime Minister should declare that no rich person's loan will be waived off. If you want to waive off, then waive off farmers' loans, middle class's home loans. This money will benefit the middle class a lot."

Kejriwal further argued that by waiving loans for the wealthy, the government could reduce tax rates. "I have calculated that if loans are not waived off, then tax rates will be halved. A person earning 12 lakhs annually pays his entire salary in tax, this is the sorrow of the middle class," Kejriwal wrote.

New Delhi: Social media giant Meta is set to get a summons from a Parliamentary Standing Committee over its boss Mark Zuckerberg's remark on the 2024 Indian general election. Nishikant Dubey, BJP MP and chairman of the House panel on Communication and Information Technology, said Meta would be summoned on grounds of spreading misinformation.

"Misinformation on a democratic country maligns its image. The organisation would have to apologise to the Parliament and the people here for this mistake," Mr Dubey said in a post on X.

In a podcast on January 10, the 40-year-old Facebook co-founder said the Covid pandemic had led to an erosion of trust in incumbent governments the world over. He incorrectly cited India's example in this connection. "2024 was a very big election year around the world and all these countries, India, had elections. The incumbents basically lost every single one. There is some sort of a global phenomenon - whether it was because of inflation or the economic policies to deal with Covid or just how the governments dealt with Covid. It seems to have had this effect that's global," he said.

Soon after, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw fact-checked Zuckerberg's remark and said the people of India had reaffirmed their trust in the NDA led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha election held last year.

"As the world's largest democracy, India conducted the 2024 elections with over 640 million voters. People of India reaffirmed their trust in NDA led by PM @narendramodi Ji's leadership. Mr. Zuckerberg's claim that most incumbent governments, including India in 2024 elections, lost post-COVID is factually incorrect," Mr Vaishnaw, who handles portfolios of Railways, Information and Broadcasting and Electronics and Information Technology in the Modi 3.0 government, said in a post on X.

"From free food for 800 million, 2.2 billion free vaccines, and aid to nations worldwide during COVID, to leading India as the fastest-growing major economy, PM Modi's decisive 3rd-term victory is a testament to good governance and public trust. Meta, it's disappointing to see misinformation from Mr. Zuckerberg himself. Let's uphold facts and credibility," he added.

The ruling BJP, which had scored thumping victories in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls, suffered some setbacks in the general election last year and ended below the majority mark. The NDA alliance, however, crossed the magic figure comfortably with key allies bolstering the BJP's numbers. A united Opposition led by the Congress did make gains, but fell well short of the numbers required to turn the tables. With Modi 3.0, Prime Minister Modi became only the second Indian Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru to get the top post for three consecutive terms.