The Assam Cabinet Friday decided to repeal the Assam Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Act of 1935, taking a key step in the journey towards a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state.
This comes just weeks after the Uttarakhand Assembly passed a UCC Bill. The state is now poised to become the first in the country to get a common law on marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance for all citizens, irrespective of religion.
The UCC is seen to be one of the core ideological projects of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its predecessor, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh. In 2014 and 2019, UCC was an electoral promise by the BJP.
However, the Narendra Modi government’s promise to implement a nation-wide code has now been entrusted to the states. Since aspects of family law, such as marriage, divorce and succession, are state subjects, a political view has emerged that it is perhaps easier to implement it through BJP-ruled states first rather than bringing in a nation-wide law.
To speak about the issues UCC raises, The Indian Express has invited Professor Faizan Mustafa, Vice Chancellor of Chanakya National Law University, Patna, for the latest session of Express Explained.Live.
How does UCC, even at the state level, affect various communities? The Uttarakhand Bill, for instance, exempts tribal communities. Even as it abolishes several practices in Muslim law such as a polygamy and nikah halala and brings gender parity that is lacking in Islamic succession, it also removes the Hindu joint family structure. Assam’s move, at least for now, affects only the Muslim communities.
Prof Mustafa, who is one of India’s leading legal academics, will explore aspects such as these and more.