Mumbai: The Maharashtra govt took its first step towards implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) on Thursday with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announcing the formation of a seven-member committee led by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai to formulate a draft legislation for its implementation within six months. Desai had earlier headed a committee which drafted the UCC for Uttarakhand.However, the committee does not have any members from minority groups including Muslims and Christians, which has led to objections by community leaders.“We hope to present a bill in the winter session of the state assembly in December,” Fadnavis told the state assembly on Thursday. “In the Constitution, the directive principles of state policy say that each state should form the UCC,” he added.The other committee members of the panel include retired Bombay high court judges R C Chavan and S G Mehare, former Maharashtra chief secretary D K Jain, former advocate general Virendra Saraf, constitutional expert Ramesh Patange and educationist and social worker Suvarna Rawal.So far, BJP-governed states have taken the lead on the Uniform Civil Code. The Uttarakhand govt has implemented it, while Assam has passed a bill.The UCC, which is a key agenda for the Modi govt, provides a common civil law for all citizens irrespective of religion. It covers laws governing marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption, which currently come within the ambit of personal laws for communities including Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Parsis.The UCC will replace these separate personal laws with a single legislation. Muslims have been opposed to the UCC because they believe it infringes on religious freedom since they follow the Sharia law on these matters.Samajwadi Party legislator from Bhiwandi East Rais Shaikh said the absence of a Muslim member in the panel has caused “concern and suspicion” among the minorities. “The UCC will have a major impact on the Muslim community and there is considerable concern and apprehension,” Shaikh said.“The Directive Principles of the Constitution do envisage a UCC, but after reaching a consensus among communities,” said Jamiatul Ulema-e-Hind (Maharashtra) Mufti Huzaifa Qasmi. “The (Maharashtra govt’s) move is politically motivated and aimed at increasing the worries of the minorities who are governed by personal laws in matters of marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption,” he said.Bombay Catholic Sabha spokesperson Dolphy D’Souza said that the Constitution protects citizens’ freedom to practise and propagate their religion. “Religious freedom and personal laws are deeply intertwined. The Law Commission of India’s 2018 report concluded that a UCC is “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage,” D’Souza said.Senior Christian educationist Father Fraser Mascarenhas felt that such an important panel must have representations from important minorities such as Muslims and Christians.
