Days after approval from the state cabinet, the Uttarakhand government will today table the final draft of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).
UCC is a common set of laws that are applicable to all the citizens of the country irrespective of any religion in matters dealing with divorce, inheritance, marriage, adoption among others.
If the bill is passed and law gets implemented then Uttarakhand will be the first state after Independence to implement UCC. The other BJP-ruled states – Madhya Pradesh and Assam are also hoping to implement this soon.
However, Goa was the only state in India which had its common civil code since Portuguese rule.
In the bill the government proposes a complete ban on polygamy and it also mentions a provision for living couple to officially register their relationship, said the sources.
Also if the bill is passed, everyone will have equal adoption rights and also both the son and daughter will have equal inheritance rights.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech in June last year, had given a major push for implementation of Uniform Civil code as the country can not run on two laws.
A committee set up by Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami drafted the bill earlier this year following consultations with over 2 lakh people.
Mr Dhami in 2022 proposed this UCC as a major election promise.
The Chief Minister is now in hope that Uttarakhand will be an example for all the other states which are willing to implement the UCC sooner or later.
