INTRODUCTION- Uniform Civil Code

Uniform Civil Code means to have a common law for every citizen living in India,
irrespective of religion or caste1. Under the Uniform Civil Code, the same law would apply
to all religions in marriage, divorce and property division. Union Civil Code means a fair
law, which has nothing to do with any religion. Uniform Civil Code is a secular law that
applies equally to people of all religions. Uniform Civil Code will bring uniform law for
every religion. That is, by giving three marriages to Muslims and talaq only three times to
the wife, the tradition that ended the relationship would end. At present, people of every
religion in the country settle these matters under their personal law. At present, there is a
personal law of the Muslim, Christian and Parsi community while Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and
Buddhists come under the Hindu Civil Law. Implementation of Uniform Civil Code in the
Constitution has been described as the responsibility of the State under Article 44, but it has
not been implemented in the country till date 2. A huge debate is going on about this. In other
words, there is no separate civil law for different sects. Having a 'uniform civil code' is the
basic spirit. Uniform civil law refers to a set of laws that apply to all citizens of a country
(regardless of whether they belong to a sect region). It is above all private laws of any sect
caste. Delhi High Court said a big thing about equal citizenship. The Delhi High Court
emphasized on the need of Uniform Civil Code i.e. Uniform Civil Code in the country.
While hearing a divorce case, the court said that there is a need for a uniform civil code in the
country. The court said that the country has now risen above religion, caste, community.
Uniform Civil Code i.e. Uniform Civil Code means there will be a common law for every
citizen living in India, irrespective of religion or caste. In the Uniform Civil Code, the same
law will be applicable for all religions in marriage, divorce and division of property.

WHY IS THIS LAW NEEDED IN COUNTRY

Different laws of different religions set a load on the judiciary. With the implementation of
the Uniform Civil Code, this problem will be overcome and the cases pending in the courts
for years will be decided soon3. There will be same law for all in marriage, divorce, adoption
1
“Uniform Civil Code”, <https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Civil_Code>.
2
“Uniform Civil Code – Challenges, Suggestions & Debate on UCC [UPSC Notes]”, Need for A Uniform Civil
Code in a Secular India, BYJU’S, <https://byjus.com/free-ias-prep/need-for-a-uniform-civil-code-in-a-secular-
india/#:~:text=A%20Uniform%20Civil%20Code%20means,and%20succession%20of%20the%20property>.
3
“Abhishek, DNA Special: Why Uniform Civil Code is need of the hour in India?” DNA, <
https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/report-dna-special-why-uniform-civil-code-is-need-of-the-hour-in-india-
2899862> Accessed July 10, 2021.
and property division, irrespective of religion. At present people of every religion deal with
these matters under their personal laws.
Equality in law for all will increase unity in the country and the country where there is unity
among citizens there is no animosity in any way that country will move forward on the path
of rapid development. In a country with the application of a common law on every Indian, the
politics of the country will also be affected and political parties will not be able to do vote
bank politics and there will be no polarization of votes.

PROS AND CONS OF UNIFORM CIVIL CODE

When the same law is followed for all other aspects in the country, then why not the personal
law for all citizens? This question not only bothers the mind but also raises a question mark
on the Constitution of India4. However, somewhere in the constitution also the tone of
contradiction is clearly visible. While Article 44 on the one hand asks the states to take steps
towards Uniform Civil Code, on the other hand Article 37 deprives the court of authority to
implement it. This clearly means that if the government does not take further steps in this
direction, then there is no option left to knock the door of the court. Not only this, what were
the reasons for keeping personal laws in the Concurrent List instead of the Union List? Due
to this contradiction, the matter is still under consideration on many aspects. From time to
time, the courts have also left no stone unturned in advocating for a Uniform Civil Code. The
judgments and observations of the Supreme Court and High Courts have always made
headlines in the public domain. Recently, the comment made by the Delhi High Court on the
Uniform Civil Code also remains a matter of discussion.
In 1985, the Supreme Court in the Mohammed Ahmed Khan vs. Shah Bano Begum Case
directly directed the Parliament to establish a Uniform Civil Code 5. In this case, Rajiv
Gandhi brought an ordinance in the Parliament to change the decision of the Supreme Court.
Jordan Diengdeh vs. S.S. Chopra Case 6, Sarla Mudgal Vs Association of India Case and
many such cases had to bear the brunt due to lack of uniform personal law 7. The court also
had to intervene and asked to take strict steps towards Uniform Civil Code.

4
Uniform Civil Code (UCC): “Pros and Cons in a nutshell”, ClearIAS, <https://www.clearias.com/uniform-
civil-code-ucc/>, Accessed March 23, 2017.
5
“Mohd. Ahmed Khan vs Shah Bano Begum and Ors” [1985] AIR 945, [1985] SCR (3) 844,
<https://indiankanoon.org/doc/823221/>.
6
“Ms. Jordan Diengdeh vs S.S. Chopra” [1985] AIR 935, [1985] SCR Supl. (1) 704,
<https://indiankanoon.org/doc/569459/>.
7
“Smt. Sarla Mudgal, President, vs Union of India & Ors” [1995] AIR 1531, [1995] SCC (3) 635,
<https://indiankanoon.org/doc/733037/>.
On the contrary, it is worth noting that there has been a lot of improvement in Muslim
personal law in other countries except India. In Muslim-majority countries, gender inequality
practices such as polygamy and triple talaq have also been abolished. In countries like
Tunisia, Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iraq, Somalia, Syria, Egypt, Morocco,
Iran, the act of having more than one spouse is completely banned. Now imagine that when
Muslim personal law can be reformed in these countries, then what are the reasons that must
be prevailing that Muslim personal law made in the 1930s is still being imposed on the
people? Has religion and religion got so carried away in the stream of politics that it is
changing according to its convenience in different nations? These are many questions whose
answers have not been found even after 75 years of independent India. Call it misfortune or
political motive; call it irony or just coincidence. Whatever be the reason, ultimately the
public has to bear the brunt. For the last 75 years, political parties have been ruling it by
making it a weapon for political gains. Justice should not be delayed so much that it starts to
look like injustice8. The country needs a Uniform Civil Code, needs to see everyone in the
country with a single lens, needs the country to follow the example of a state like Goa, and
needs to take the country forward in a better direction. Because social justice, social
upliftment and gender equality cannot be established until two legislations remain in force in
the country.
The coming of uniform civil code and personal law will provide stability to the society. The
nation can be great only when efforts are made to correct it in the present by groping the
pages of history. As long as the last person sitting in the society will not get its benefit, then
it is just a hoax and nothing else. With the coming of the Uniform Civil Code, equality will
reach every section of the society and only then the goal of the constitution will be considered
successful.

SECULAR COUNTRIES WITH UNIFORM CIVIL CODE

Such laws are applicable in most of the modern countries of the world. The number of
secular countries governed by Uniform Civil Code is very large: - There are many countries
such as America, Ireland, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Turkey, Indonesia, Sudan, Egypt,
which have implemented Uniform Civil Code.

8
Saket Mangla,” Uniform Civil Code Boon to Our Society: Merits”, Legal Service India E-Journal,
<http://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-1720-uniform-civil-code-boon-to-our-society-merits.html>.
INDIAN CONSTITUTION AND UNIFORM CIVIL CODE
Uniform Civil Code is mentioned in Article 44 of Part IV of the Constitution of India. In this
policy-supervision has been given that our aim will be to implement Uniform Civil Law. The
Supreme Court has also taken the initiative to know the views of the Central Government in
the direction of implementing Uniform Civil Code many times9.

The word 'Secularism' was introduced in the Preamble of the Indian Constitution through the
42nd Amendment10. From this it is clear that the objective of the Indian Constitution is to
eliminate any discrimination on religious grounds with all the citizens of India, but due to the
non-implementation of Uniform Civil Code till the present time, a large section in India is
still following religious laws. Because of which he is deprived of his rights11.
The concept of 'rule of law' exists in the Fundamental Rights, according to which, there
should be a common law for all citizens. But even after so many years of independence, a
large section of the population is fighting for their fundamental rights. Thus non-
implementation of Uniform Civil Code is in a way a violation of rule of law and preamble of
the constitution. Violating the political equality of a class in the name of respect for the
'composite culture' is an injustice to the constitution as well as to the culture and society
because under the basic rules of every culture and civilization women and men have equal
rights but Over time these rules are misrepresented and inequalities are created 12.

VIEWS OF LAW COMMISSION ON UNIFORM CIVIL CODE

A Law Commission was constituted by the Ministry of Law and Justice in the year 2016 to
comprehensively study the issues related to Uniform Civil Code 13. The Law Commission
said that the issue of Uniform Civil Code is affected by the conflict between Articles 14 and
25 under Fundamental Rights. The commission pointed out the issue of supremacy of

9
Central Government Act, “Article 44 in The Constitution of India 1949,”
<https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1406604/>.
10
Aniketsml, Secularism and Constitution of India: “Unity in Diversity, Secularism and Constitution of India,”
<http://www.legalservicesindia.com/article/1964/Secularism-and-Constitution-of-India.html>.
11
“Preamble to the Constitution of India,”
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preamble_to_the_Constitution_of_India#:~:text=Secular,-Secular%20means
%20that&text=By%20the%2042nd%20Amendment%20in%201976%2C%20the%20term%20%22Secular
%22,there%20is%20no%20state%20religion.
12
“CONCEPT OF RULE OF LAW,” IAS Score, <https://iasscore.in/national-issues/concept-of-rule-of-law>
Accessed 22nd July, 2017.
13
Jairam Ramesh, “What has government done about Law Commission report on Uniform Civil Code,” THE
HINDU, <https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/what-has-government-done-about-law-commission-report-
on-uniform-civil-code-jairam-ramesh/article31094808.ece> Accessed March 18, 2020.
women's rights along with Indian pluralistic culture 14. Keeping in view the actions being
taken by the Personal Law Board, the Law Commission said that it should be the duty of
every religion and institution to give priority to women's rights. According to the view of the
Law Commission, all the stereotypes that create a situation of inequality in the society should
be reviewed. Therefore, there is a need to codify all private legal procedures to expose bias
and stereotypes related to them. From the point of view of human rights prevailing globally,
universally accepted personal laws should take precedence. It was recommended to fix the
age of 18 years of marriage for boys and girls as the minimum standard so that equality can
be established in the society.

WHAT WILL BE THE PROBLEMS DUE TO NON-IMPLEMENTATION OF

UNIFORM CIVIL CODE?
After detailed discussion, on 23 November 1948, Article 44 was added to the Constitution
and the government was instructed to implement a uniform civil code for all citizens of the
country. It was the intention of the framers of the Constitution that in place of separate laws
for different religions, there should be an Indian Civil Code for all Indians irrespective of
religion, caste, language, region and gender. But there was never a serious effort to
implement Article 44 (uniform civil code) that was created after detailed discussion. Till date
the Indian Civil Code has not been drafted. As a result, very few people know about the
benefits it brings. Its non-implementation has many problems; some of the main ones are as
follows:
In Muslim law, polygamy is exempt from one husband and four wives, but other religions
have a strict one husband-one wife rule, second marriage is an offense even if there is a valid
reason like infertility or impotence, and section 494 of the Indian Penal Code has seven
There is a provision of imprisonment for one year. In such a situation, many people adopt
Muslim religion to escape from jail15.
The age of majority for Muslim girls is not fixed, so girls are married at the age of 11-12
years, while in other religions the minimum age of marriage for girls is 18 years. The World
Health Organization also talks about the minimum age limit being 18 in this case. Despite
triple talaq being illegal, talaq-e-hasan is still valid and there is no compulsion to tell the
grounds of divorce, only to wait for three months, but in other religions, marriage can be
14
“Fundamental rights in India,” <https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_rights_in_India#:~:text=There
%20are%20six%20fundamental%20rights,rights%20(Articles%2029%2D30)>.
15
Anubhav Pandey,” Arguments against Implementation of Uniform Civil Code,”
<https://blog.ipleaders.in/arguments-implementation-uniform-civil-code/>.
dissolved only through court. Is. Due to lack of accountability to the judiciary for the
prevalent divorces among Muslims, Muslim women always have to live in an atmosphere of
fear.
In Muslim law, the system of succession is complex, there is a lot of discrimination between
sons and daughters in ancestral property, in other religions also the rights of the wife in the
property acquired after marriage are undefined and the laws of succession are complex.
There is no provision for the protection of rights in the ancestral property of daughters after
marriage and the rights of the wife in the property acquired after marriage are undefined.
The above topics are related to human rights which are neither related to religion nor can they
be called religious practices. Yet even after 73 years of independence, discrimination in the
name of religion continues. Our Constitution makers had envisioned the Indian Civil Code
through Article 44, so that everyone should get equal rights and the unity and integrity of the
country should be strengthened, but due to vote bank politics, it could not be implemented till
date. If a Uniform Civil Code can be applicable for all in Goa then why can't there be a
Uniform Civil Code for all the citizens of the country?
Benefits of Indian Civil Code: By implementing an Indian Civil Code for all the citizens of
the country, the country and society will get freedom from hundreds of laws. At present,
different laws applicable to different religions create inferiority complex in everyone's mind,
so by implementing one Indian Civil Code for all Indian citizens, everyone will get freedom
from inferiority complex. The concept of one husband-one wife would apply equally to all
and the benefit of exceptions like infertility or impotence would be equally available to all
Indians. A general rule of dissolution through court would be applicable to all. In special
circumstances, the oral dissolution of marriage will also be allowed to all citizens, whether
Hindu or Muslim, Parsi or Christian. Son and daughter will get equal rights in ancestral
property and discrepancy based on religion, caste, region and gender will end. In case of
divorce, the husband and wife will have equal rights in the property acquired after marriage.
In respect of bequests, donations, distribution, adoption, etc., the same law would apply to all
Indians, irrespective of religion16. This would enable a comprehensive and unified law at the
national level and would be equally applicable to all citizens. The separatist mentality arising
out of having separate laws on the basis of caste, religion and region will end and we will be
able to move fast towards building a united nation. Having different laws for different
religions leads to unnecessary litigation. Having a civil code for all will save the valuable

16
“UNIFORM CIVIL CODE,” Business Standard, <https://wap.business-standard.com/amp/about/what-is-
uniform-civil-code>.
time of the court. Anyone with fundamental religious rights such as worship, prayer, fasting
or fasting, and for the management of a temple, mosque, church, gurudwara or opening of
religious schools, for the propagation of religious instruction or for the adoption of any
method of marriage or for performing funeral rites. There will be no interference in adopting
the method.
Discrimination will end in the rights of all sisters and daughters:-Article 37 clearly states that
it is the fundamental duty of the government to implement the Directive Principles. Just as
the observance of the Constitution is the fundamental duty of all citizens, it is the moral duty
of the government to implement the Constitution 100%. In a secular country, there is no
separate law on religious grounds, but we still have Hindu Marriage Act, Parsi Marriage Act
and Christian Marriage Act in force. Till the time the Indian Civil Code is not implemented,
it does not seem appropriate to call India secular. Different laws based on religion, caste,
region and gender existing in India are like smoldering smoke in the extinguished fire of
partition, which can explode and break the unity of the country at any time, hence an Indian
Civil Code by abolishing them. It is necessary not only to maintain secularism, but also to
keep the integrity of the country intact. The day a draft of the Indian Civil Code is ready and
the public will know its benefits, no one will oppose it. Those who do not know about its
benefits, they are opposing it. This will end fundamentalism, communalism, regionalism and
linguism. Hindu-sister daughters will not get much benefit from this, because in the Hindu
Marriage Act, women and men already have almost equal rights. Muslim sisters and
daughters will get the most benefit from this, because they are not considered equal to men in
Sharia law. The court cannot ask the government to enact a law, but it can express its
sentiment and is doing the same thing over and over again 17. The Supreme Court or High
Court may direct the constitution of a Judicial Commission or Expert Committee to study the
Uniform Civil Code of developed countries and applicable laws in India and to make public a
draft of the Indian Civil Code by combining all the good to start a public discussion on the
subject.

CONCLUSION

17
“Has the Supreme Court set the ball rolling for a Uniform Civil Code?” Hindustan Times,
<https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/has-the-supreme-court-set-the-ball-rolling-for-a-uniform-civil-
code-101615802810671.html>.
In this research paper, it is concluded that Uniform civil law refers to a set of laws that apply
to all citizens of a country. It is above all private laws of any sect caste. Uniform Civil Code
means there will be a common law for every individual living in India, disregarding of
religion or caste. In the Uniform Civil Code, the same law will be applicable for all religions
in marriage, divorce and division of property. The coming of uniform civil code and personal
law will provide stability to the society. The nation can be great only when efforts are made
to correct it in the present by groping the pages of history. As long as the last person sitting
in the society will not get its benefit, then it is just a hoax and nothing else. With the coming
of the Uniform Civil Code, equality will reach every section of the society and only then the
goal of the constitution will be considered successful.