Uttarakhand: Tenure of Uniform Civil Code Committee extended

The Uttarakhand government has extended the mandate of its uniform civil code committee by six months, according to authorities on Friday.

The Committee was established to look into how the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) may be implemented, and its chair is former Supreme Court justice (retired) Ranjana Prakash Desai. By May 27, 2023, the committee may deliver its report to the government.

More than 30 locations have already been visited by the panel to collect proposals from the public. More than 2.25 lakh ideas have been submitted to the committee thus far.

The state of Uttarakhand’s administration announced its choice to adopt the Uniform Civil Code on May 27 of this year.

In order to create a draft proposal for the implementation of the UCC, which broadly relates to the personal laws of citizens that apply to everyone regardless of their religion, gender, or sexual orientation, the State government established the five-member team chaired by Desai.

Additionally on the panel are retired Justice Permod Kohli, Manu Gaur, a social activist, Shatrughan Singh, a former chief secretary, and Surekha Dangwal, vice chancellor of Doon University.

The expert committee’s inaugural meeting took place in July.

The state launched a webpage in September of this year to receive recommendations from the public regarding UCC. It is open to recommendations from public representatives, individuals, academics, organisations, and state agencies.

A plan to create and implement personal laws that apply to all Indian residents equally, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender, or gender identity, is known as the “Uniform Civil Code.” Currently, the religious texts of different communities regulate their personal laws.

The law is covered by Article 44 of the Constitution, which states that the state must work to ensure that citizens have access to a uniform civil code across all of India.

Notably, the BJP pledged to implement UCC if it won the 2019 Lok Sabha election by making the commitment in its manifesto.