Skip to main content

2018 Law Commission report favoured diversity, rejected Universal Civil Code

By Abhay Kumar* 

The contentious is -- sue of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is again in the public debate. Since the days of the making of the Constitution, the Hindu right-wing forces have strongly supported it. Their agenda is to construct a strong nation upon “one culture, one religion and one law”. The existence of cultural diversity and the multiple ways of living have always troubled them. Since the UCC was strongly pro- tested by a large number of members sitting in the Constituent Assembly, the makers of the Constitution put it on the back burner. At that time, Babasaheb Ambedkar cautioned that “No Government can exercise its power in such a manner as to provoke the Muslim community to rise in rebellion. I think it would be a mad Government if it did so”.
Amid this difference, the issue was put under the Directive Principles of the State Policy. Unlike the Fundamental Rights of the Constitution, the Directive Principles of the State Policy are simply guidelines for the government. They are not enforceable in the court until they are made law. The Article 44 of the Directive Principle of State Policy, thus, asked the State “to endeavour to secure for citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the territory of India”.
Since Fundamental Rights are supreme and cultural rights and religious freedoms are protected under them, personal laws compatible with the basic tenets of the Constitution can- not be weeded out. However, the communal forces often justify the UCC by selectively reading the Constitution. While they invoke the Directive Principles of State Policy in support of the UCC, they like to acknowledge that cultural diversity and religious freedom are protected under Fundamental Rights.
Historically speaking, the agenda of uniformity goes back to the rise of the mod- ern nation-state and capital- ism as the dominant mode of production. Uniformity, rather than diversity and individual-based property relation, instead of community-based resources, were seen as conducive to the establishment of a majoritarian nation-state and profit- based capitalist economy. The imposition of uniform laws has facilitated the penetration of the market and led to the exploitation of resources.
That is why the issue for the UCC cannot be under- stood if it is not placed into today’s neo-liberal economic order. The corporate forces find the customary laws of the Adivasi communities as a hindrance to their access to their land. The members of the Constituent Assembly were visionary in ensuring the Constitutional safeguards for them. The Hindu Right, which often serves the interest of the corporate forces, are trying to change this Constitutional protection through the introduction of the UCC.
The scholars of the laws have rightly pointed out that, like cultural diversity, there exists a diversity of laws as well. For example, personal laws and penal codes are not uniformly applied across the country. Even the 21st Law Commission report, published on 31 August 2018, underscored diversity and rejected the desirability of imposing the UCC. As the report put it, “While the diversity of Indian culture can and should be celebrated, specific groups or weaker sections of the society must not be dis-privileged in the process. Resolution of this conflict does not mean the abolition of difference. This Commission has therefore dealt with laws that are discriminatory rather than providing a uniform civil code which is neither necessary nor desirable at this stage” p.7).
Similarly, the progressive currents across the globe, too, prefer diversity to homogeneity. But unfortunately, the goal of uniformity is presented by the mainstream media and the ruling forces as “the solution to all the problems” in our country. Look at the irony: while the Narendra Modi Government has not implemented a single suggestion of the 21st Law Commission report, it is supporting the campaign for the UCC ahead of elections.
It is often not realised that uniformity and the so-called “universal” principles are often secretly coded in favour of the majority. Similarly, it is naive to place the campaign for the UCC outside the domain of politics. For example, can the rise of the BJP and its vigorous campaign for the UCC, along with its tirade against Muslim personal laws, be separated? The demand for the UCC, the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and the abolition of Article 370 has been the pet agendas of the BJP. Besides, the BJP has been at the forefront of taking credit for the campaign against triple talaq. But the reality is that the wrong practice of triple talaq was outlawed by the Supreme Court after the long struggles of women’s movements.
While the Supreme Court rightly called the practice of triple talaq “invalid” and closed the matter, the BJP went to the extent of criminalizing the act of divorce for Muslim men. Nowhere did giving divorce invite imprisonment, but Muslim men were jailed, and their wives were deprived of their source of income in the absence of any social security offered by the state.
The need of the hour, therefore, is to take the 21st Law Commission report seriously. Similarly, no one should pose the question of the UCC narrowly. We should reject the communal propaganda that the rise of the Muslim population is caused by the non-existence of the UCC. The Muslim population has declined over the years, and Muslim families have increasingly adopted family planning measures. Even the Holy Quran asks its followers to keep a gap between two children. We need to tell that reforms are needed not only in Muslim personal laws but also in Hindu, Christian and Parsi personal laws. For example, Hindu Law gives tax concessions to Hindus. However, it is rarely discussed by the media. Even secular law like the Special Marriage Act is not free from lacunae, and it also needs reforms. It is high time to address gender- based discrimination and unequal property relations and reform personal laws which promote equality and gender justice. Similarly, the protection of the land rights, cultural autonomy and customary laws of the marginalized communities need to be protected. These concerns can be better ad- dressed by not imposing uniformity but respecting diversity. 
---
*Delhi-based journalist. This article was first published in News Trail

Comments

TRENDING

Crucial to revisit roots, embrace core Hindu principles: love, compassion, harmony

A note on religious leaders'  Satya Dharam Samvad in Haridwar: *** In a groundbreaking gathering, more than 25 religious leaders including Swamis, Acharyas, Pujaris, Gurus, and Sadhvis from all over India convened to discuss the tenets of Hinduism on September 16th, 2023, in Haridwar, to discuss and discern the current trajectory of Hinduism. This brand new initiative, the Satya Dharam Samvad, was inspired to organize its first assembly in response to the December 2021 Dharma Sansad, where hate speech and calls for violence against the Muslim community contravened the essential principles of Hinduism. Religion is being used to incite riots among Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Jains, etc. In the face of such hatred, Swami Raghavendra felt that something meaningful should be done in the present climate. 

Commodification of road accident deaths: The hidden health hazard of motonormativity

By Chandra Vikash*  Jahnavi Kandula, an Indian student from Andhra Pradesh, studying in America was killed in a road accident by a police motor car in January 2023. Now, 8 months after the accident, a bodycam video of Daniel Orderer, who is the vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, has gone viral on social media. He was laughing at her death and saying that “she was 26 years old, anyway… she had limited value… just give her $11,000 (ie Rs 9.13 lakh)”.

Maoist tendency of mechanically adhering to Chinese path ignores Indian conditions

By Harsh Thakor  The C.P.I. (Maoist) formed in 2004 with merger of the C.P.I. (M.L) Peoples War and the Maoist Communist Centre has demonstrated courage in intensity compared to any great revolutionary struggle in the history of the world. It leads the largest armed movement of a Peoples Guerrilla Army in the world today and proved themselves as the true torch bearers of the Indian Communist movement.

Understanding universe, time, space: A crucial, unresolved question before humanity

By Prof Sudhanshu Tripathi*  A crucial question before humanity, still unresolved, is to comprehend the true nature and expanse of Time and Space in Universe. If both are indeed limitless, there is no question then to go beyond them. Because both Time and Space are indeed the two key determinants in this mundane world which define the very expanse of the life period of all living organisms and non-living entities and their relative spatial area producing mental and extra-mental consciousness. 

Abrogation of Art 370: Increasing alienation, relentless repression, simmering conflict

One year after the abrogation by the Central Government of Art. 370 in Kashmir, what is the situation in the Valley. Have the promises of peace, normalcy and development been realised? What is the current status in the Valley? Here is a detailed note by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties , “Jammu & Kashmir: One Year after Abrogation of Art. 370: Increasing Alienation, Relentless Repression, Simmering Conflict”:

Informal efforts to help children of remote Bundelkhand village unable to go to school

By Bharat Dogra  Rajaram Ka Purva is a remote rural hamlet in Banda district of Uttar Pradesh inhabited by the poorest of the poor. Almost none of the children in this hamlet are able to go to school. The reasons relate to poverty, distance of the nearest school as well as the unsafe path to school.

We need to resurrect Neruda, give birth to poets of his kind amidst neofascist rampage

By Harsh Thakor  On 23rd September we commemorate the 50th death anniversary of Pablo Neruda, whose contribution to revolutionary poetry was path breaking. Pablo Neruda’s poetry manifested the spiritual essence of revolutionary poetry and how poetry was a weapon for a revolutionary struggle. The story of his life illustrated the spiritual transformation undergone a human being to transform him into a revolutionary and how environment shapes the lie of revolutionary.

2024 elections in India: An agenda for justice, peace, democracy and environment

By Bharat Dogra  As debates leading up to 2024 union elections in India preceded by some important state assembly become intense, it is not enough to talk about election alignments among various political parties and their seat adjustments; the questions relating to the most important priorities and a future agenda based on justice, equality, peace, environment protection and democracy must get the most importance.

Job opportunity in unexplored territory... to bulldoze hurdles on way to Akhand Aryavart

By Abdul Puncharwala*  Baba and Mama the Jai-Veeru Jodi of Shuddh desi politics bring an excellent opportunity of employment to all the bright matriculate drop-outs busy with their Insta and YouTube reels. Keep your phones aside for a moment and read this advert carefully. It is going to change your life forever.

By undermining Dravidian politics, can Tamil Nadu regain glory of Kamaraj governance?

By NS Venkataraman*  For over fifty years now, Tamil Nadu has been ruled by two Dravidian parties namely DMK and AIADMK alternately. Before the Dravidian party came to power, Tamil Nadu was ruled by the congress party and had experienced the golden rule by K. Kamaraj who was succeeded by Bhaktavatsalam for a short period.