Team Blitz India
NEW DELHI: In a historic move, Uttarakhand became the first state in the country to pass a legislation on February 7 on a Uniform Civil Code which presents common law for marriage, divorce, inheritance of property, making the registration of live-in relationships mandatory etc. It was one of the key promises of the BJP in the lead-up to the Assembly election in the state in 2022
The Bill was passed a day after leader of 47- member BJP legislature party and Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami tabled it in the House. Nineteen Congress MLAs and three others, including lone BSP legislator, opposed the Bill, demanding it be referred to the Select Committee of the House.
Some of the key elements of the Bill are a complete ban on polygamy and child marriage, a standardised marriageable age for girls across religions, and a uniform process for divorce. The Bill will not apply to Scheduled Tribes. While granting adoption rights to all, including Muslim women, the UCC bans nikah halala and iddat. It makes the registration of live-in relationships mandatory which extends to “any resident of Uttarakhand… in a live-in relationship outside the State”. Dhami said once the Bill is enacted as law and enforced, it will help boost women empowerment in the state.
