Chairman of Department Related Standing Committee on Law, Sushil Kumar Modi, has pitched for excluding tribal and North Eastern States out of proposed Uniform Civil Code (UCC), sources said on Monday.

Meanwhile, indication is that the government might not be able to introduce the bill during forthcoming Monsoon Session of the Parliament beginning July 20. Modi presided over the meeting of the panel which was attended by Members of Parliament of various parties.

A Uniform Civil Code will mean a set of common personal laws for all citizens. As on date, there are different personal laws for Hindus and Muslims. Personal law covers property, marriage and divorce, inheritance and succession.

Part IV of the Indian Constitution prescribes Directive Principles of State Policy and under this, Article 44 provides Uniform Civil Code for the citizens. “The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the territory of India,” the article says.

According to sources, Modi put forward his opinion in the personal capacity and not on the party line. His argument was since Schedule VI of the Constitution provides special status to North Eastern States. At the same time, tribals have their own customs and rituals. It was also pointed out in the meeting that the central laws are not applicable in some North Eastern States without their concurrence. Keeping these in mind, all these should be kept out of UCC, Modi opined.

Support for UCC

Meanwhile, sources also said that Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut strongly pitched for UCC giving example of advanced countries,. BSP MP Maluk Nagar also supported the move. TRS MP KR Suresh Reddy said that his party will take a call when the bill will be introduced.

Congress MP Vivek Tankha and DMK MP P Wilson submitted separate written statements, asserting that there was no need to have fresh consultations on the emotive issue. In his letter, Tankha also reiterated the view of the previous law commission that providing a uniform civil code was “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage”. Questioning the intent behind the move, Tagore linked the law panel move to the polls.

In a presentation during the meeting, law commission officials said 19 lakh suggestions have been received so far in response to its public notice on June 14. The exercise will continue till July 13.

Implementation of a UCC has been part of BJP election manifestos and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing BJP workers in Bhopal last month, made a strong push for it, asking how can the country function with dual laws that govern personal matters, and accused the Opposition of using the UCC issue to “mislead and provoke” the Muslim community. Uttarakhand is already in the process of implementing its common code.

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