The ‘Uniform Civil Code Uttarakhand 2024’ Bill passed by the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly received President Droupadi Murmu’s assent, taking it a step closer to implementation in the state. The law was a long-standing promise of the Bharatiya Janata Party and its government in Uttarakhand led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
Uttarakhand is on track to become the first state to have a Uniform Civil Code in place. The Bill was passed by a voice vote in the Uttarakhand Assembly on February 7 at the end of a two-day special session.
“Under Article 201 of the ‘Constitution of India’, the President gave assent to the ‘Uniform Civil Code Uttarakhand 2024’ Bill passed by the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, on 11 March 2024, and it is published as Act Number 3, the year 2024, of Uttarakhand for general information,” the state government said in a gazette issued on Wednesday.
The UCC makes it mandatory for residents to register their live-in relationships even if they do not reside in the state. Furthermore, children born out of live-in relationships will now be considered legitimate and the women abandoned by their live-in partners will be eligible for maintenance.
Failure to register live-in relationships may draw imprisonment of six months, the Code states.
The law also grants women special rights to divorce their husbands if he is found guilty on the charge of rape unnatural sex offence. The right will also apply to a woman whose husband has move than one wife.
The law also bars the practice of polygamy and ‘halala’, practiced by some Muslims. Tribal communities have been kept out of the ambit of the UCC in order to preserve their traditions, practices, and rituals.
“It is a moment of great joy and pride for all the people of the state that the UCC Bill passed by our government in the Uttarakhand Assembly has been approved by the respected President Draupadi Murmu ji today. Certainly, with the implementation of the UCC in the state, along with providing equal rights to all citizens, the oppression of women will also be curbed. #UniformCivilCode will play an important role in promoting harmony by proving the importance of social equality in the state,” CM Dhami wrote in a post on X.
After the Bill was passed, the state government formed a Rules Making and Implementation Committee headed by retired IAS officer and UCC draft committee member Shatrughan Singh. Other members of the draft committee, Surekha Dangwal and Manu Gaur, along with Uttarakhand Police ADG (Administration) Amit Sinha and Uttarakhand Resident Commissioner Ajay Mishra make up the rules committee.
While the Uniform Civil Code has received the President’s assent, the official notification of the Act will be issued only when the Rules Making and Implementation Committee formulates the rules.
