Uniform Civil Code (UCC)

UCC in Uttarakhand The bill is based on the recommendations given by 5 member panel headed by retd. Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai.

First state afte Independence

The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, passed by the Uttarakhand Assembly on February 7, became a law with President Droupadi Murmu giving her assent to it on March 11.

The Uniform Civil Code of Uttarakhand Act, 2024

Uttarakhand is the first state in the country after Independence to adopt such a law.

meant to govern and regulate the laws relating to marriage and divorce, succession, live-in relationships, inheritance and maintenance for all citizens irrespective of their religion, gender, caste, or sex.

It leaves Scheduled Tribes out of its ambit. India Today

Register with district registrar

According to the UCC, couples in live-in relationships must register with the district registrar.

Inform parents

Additionally, if the couple in question is under 21 years of age, the registrar must inform their parents or guardians before proceeding with the registration of the relationship.

Punishment

Failure to register within a month can lead to a three-month jail term or a Rs 10,000 fine.

Adoption

The UCC Bill is silent on adoption.

Currently, Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and Sikhs can adopt under the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956 (HAMA). 

Since other religions (Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Parsis) either do not have personal laws governing adoption or don’t permit it, persons from these communities can only adopt under the secular Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 (JJ Act).

Thus, disparate regimes for adoption will continue to apply for Hindus and persons of other communities.

There have been demands for reforming HAMA as the absence of registration requirements and institutional oversight leaves room for misuse such as trafficking of children.

The JJ Act, on the other hand, provides sufficient safeguards to protect the safety and best interests of the child being adopted. 

Instituting its application in all communities, therefore, would have protected the interests of children across religions.

Inheritance to women

Parental resistance to giving women immovable property in India’s patrilineal communities is well-documented, and people may use wills to deny women their rightful share in inheritance. 

Therefore, protective mechanisms against disinheritance are imperative. 

However, in the case of the Muslim community, one such mechanism has been eliminated.

Under Muslim law, a person can only bequeath 1/3rd of their property through a will.

The rest passes through the prescribed scheme of succession. 

Since a limit on testamentary succession is absent in the UCC Bill, it leaves vulnerable groups, such as women and queer persons, without protections from disinheritance.

For Hindus, HAMA allows dependents of the deceased to apply to court for maintenance if a will or the succession scheme does not adequately take care of their needs, especially if they are unable to support themselves.

The amount and form of maintenance has been left to the discretion of the court. 

Since the Bill does not contain any provisions for the maintenance of heirs, this protective measure will remain available to Hindus but not to people of other religions.

The impact of the UCC on the status of coparcenary property—ancestral property that is held by male and female lineal descendants up to the third generation—and Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) has been a central concern.

For years now, commentators have been calling for a categorical take on these issues and the concomitant benefits.

However, the Bill contains no mention of coparcenary property. 

Given that the Bill only repeals existing laws in case of conflict, certain provisions regarding coparcenary property from the Hindu Succession Act 1956 (HSA) will likely survive. 

This would mean that coparcenaries will continue to come into existence and operate per the HSA.

Once the joint property is partitioned under the HSA and the deceased person’s share is separated, this share will be subject to the succession scheme in the UCC Bill.

the UCC Bill does not only outlaw several personal practices of Muslims but also relies on criminalisation for enforcement, such as by penalising extrajudicial modes of divorce.

As only Muslim personal law provides for extrajudicial modes of divorce, the intention behind such a provision is clear.

It specifically targets Muslim practices such as khula (divorce initiated by the wife) and mubarat (divorce by mutual consent).

HUFs are treated as a separate entity for the purposes of taxation and enjoy certain exemptions, a benefit available solely to Hindus. 

In a 2018 report on family law reform, the Law Commission had noted that this exemption is not conducive for the tax regime and may be used for avoiding taxes.

An exercise in achieving true uniformity would necessitate either abolishing the HUF system or extending it to all religious communities. Print

Argument for UCC

Alimony is a family civil matter where personal law is often applicable. Section 125 of the CrPC, a criminal provision, circumvents disputes arising from personal laws and ensures women a fair chance to get justice. Unless we address the root cause, which is personal civil codes, many women will never be able to obtain justice. Protecting women’s rights through legal remedies shouldn’t be optional. While this judgment is a positive step, it is not a real solution to discrimination. We need to implement a uniform civil code to protect the legal rights of Indian women, regardless of their background and religion. Print Men will now abandon, not divorce