Uniform Civil Code: Why it is a quest for social equality in modern India and not a Hindu versus Muslim debate

The Uniform Civil Code has been one of the most contentious and vexatious topics of conversation in the country over the past few months. Matters have finally come to a head as the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami, finally tabled the final draft of the Uniform Civil Code in the State Assembly on Tuesday. The 172-page document, which has 392 sections, proposes uniform laws concerning all areas of personal and family life, such as divorce, marriage, custody of children, alimony, succession, and also live-in relationships of all faiths. This has led to intense political and social debate between “liberals” and the so-called right-wing, with the liberals insisting that the UCC goes against the tenets of secularism and strips religious minorities of their right to their cultural practices such as polygamy, etc. Some of these disparagers are the same people who last week were infuriated at Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik’s second marriage to Sana Javed and who mercilessly trolled the newly married couple in the rightful defense of Sania Mirza, who was allegedly driven to take ‘khula’ and divorce her husband since he wanted a second marriage. This is the curious, but not entirely unexpected dichotomy in a country as multifaceted and multicultural and a home to so many religions, communities and ethnicities such as India. There are always two sides to the same coin. One can never be entirely right or entirely wrong. Contrary to public opinion, Uttarakhand is not the first state to implement this; the state of Goa has always been following a version of this since it was enforced in Goa in 1870 in terms of the Portuguese Civil Code, 1867 when Goa was still under Portuguese rule. The territory continues to follow this code even after joining the Indian Union, which represents a model of uniformity, treating all religions equally and upholding certain specific rights. Marital property laws in Goa require equal ownership of properties before and after marriage and equal distribution in case of divorce and equal rights to heirs irrespective of gender. They are also the only state in India to allow for prenuptial agreements. Polygamy is banned in the state irrespective of religion. Left liberals often convolute the meaning of secularism. Secularism as an ideal does not apply directly to an individual but rather to the State and how it frames its laws and policies, and subsequently, how honestly the administration fulfills its duties and carries out its actions in a manner as true to the Constitution as possible. Article 44 of the Constitution states that “The State shall endeavour to secure for its citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India.” When our Constitution was being framed, some of its architects pointed out that if India was going to be a secular state, where matters of governance would be kept separate from religion or culture, there should be one uniform law of the land—an idea supported by Jawaharlal Nehru and Bhimrao Ambedkar. With the Partition still being a fresh memory and India being an infant and vulnerable nation, it was decided that if the Muslim Personal Law were abolished, Indian Muslims would feel persecuted and be faced with an identity crisis after the horrors of Partition and the beginning of a new way of life and homeland. However, so many decades later, in 2024, this argument no longer holds water. Most countries such as the US, Ireland, Japan, Indonesia, Egypt, France, and Germany follow a unified civil code when it comes to marriage and family laws. First of all, let us stop making this a Hindu vs. Muslim issue; it is more of a gender and social equality issue before anything else. According to the United Nations, 27.3 per cent of Indian women between the ages of 20 and 24 marry before the age of 18, and according to a study in 2018, 19 per cent of women between the ages of 15 to 49 were victims of domestic violence. Most Indian women’s challenges stem from diverse societal and religious constraints as well as archaic and draconian personal laws. Yes, Muslim women are indeed worse off than their Hindu counterparts today, especially concerning polygamy, but polygamy was very much a rigid Hindu practice as well before Hindu reformists campaigned to get it abolished. Why should Indian Muslim women, who are Indian citizens, still be subject to disrespectful and unequal practices such as polygamy, triple talaq, etc.? Muslim personal law derives heavily from their ancient religious texts, as did Hindus before the Hindu Reform movement, and it is silly for the liberals opposing the abolition of these primitive laws to endorse the notion that Indian Muslims are somehow still too primitive for reform in today’s modern world of progress and equality. Even Muslim-majority countries such as Malaysia, Tunisia, Turkey and Azerbaijan have constitutional provisions or legal frameworks in place that emphasize equality and non-discrimination concerning gender inequality in issues such as marriage, inheritance, and divorce. India has been elected for a second term as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (2022-2024), where there have been repeated requests for a Uniform Civil Code. India, as a global rising power, can only serve as a model for the rest of the world if it resolves its disparities. Again, it is crucial to recognise that the implementation of the UCC is NOT ABOUT suppressing the Muslim community, but a call for social equality. Socially backward communities such as tribal communities too are opposing these laws, and while their interests must be protected, regressive practices such as polygamy must be done away with if we are to move forward as a society. In Muslim Shia and Sunni law, women inherit only half of what men receive. Christian women under the Indian Succession Act receive only 1/3 of the property. Despite amendments, Parsi law continues to show discrimination based on gender. Parsi women marrying outside the community or non-Parsi women marrying into the community continue to be overlooked when it comes to inheritance in favor of male heirs. Even concerning the Hindu Succession Act and its landmark 2005 amendment, which made it possible for daughters to have equal property rights, till today, if a Hindu woman passes away intestate or childless, her property is prioritised first by her husband’s family, then her father’s heirs, and then her mother’s heirs. We as a society should move beyond the narrative that the Uniform Civil Code is to subdue any community or religion and recognise that it is a mark of social progress and reform that has been necessary for a long time now in a country that has been traditionally known to have a social imbalance concerning gender equality. It is now time to fix that and look forward to our nation climbing greater heights on the ladder of global power and relevance and taking our place in the modern world as a nation of equals, united and undivided. The author is a freelance journalist and features writer based out of Delhi. Her main areas of focus are politics, social issues, climate change and lifestyle-related topics. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. 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