The Maharashtra government, in a step towards ensuring uniformity in civil laws across religions, has announced the formation of a seven-member committee, under retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai, to draft a uniform civil code (UCC) for the state. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis made the announcement in the recent monsoon session of the legislature in Mumbai.
The committee will also include former Bombay High Court judges Justice R.C. Chavan (retired) and Justice S.G. Mehare (retired), former chief secretary D.K. Jain, former advocate general of Maharashtra Birendra Saraf, Padma awardee and senior Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker Ramesh Patange and social activist Suvarna Rawal.
BJP-ruled Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Assam have already implemented UCC. Justice Desai had chaired the committees formed by the governments of Uttarakhand and Gujarat for implementation of UCC. She is also part of the committee formed by the government of West Bengal to examine a draft UCC bill for the state.
“The directive principles of state policy as contained in the Constitution of India say that every state must consider preparing a uniform civil code,” Fadnavis told the state legislature. The committee was being formed accordingly and would submit its report with the government within six months. “It will be our effort that the law will be tabled before the two houses of the state legislature during the forthcoming winter session in Nagpur (in December),” he added.
The proposed legislation is expected to cover matters such as marriage, divorce, maintenance, inheritance and succession, irrespective of caste and religion. Currently, religious groups such as Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Parsis have their own set of personal laws. The UCC will override these laws.
Uttarakhand was the first state to enforce UCC. Gujarat subsequently passed its own UCC legislation, followed by Assam.
Rais Shaikh, MLA of the Samajwadi Party, pointed to how the Maharashtra committee lacked voices from minority and marginalised groups. “The Constitution protects every religion under Articles 14 and 29, granting all citizens the right to practice their faith. Yet, the Maharashtra government’s seven-member uniform civil code committee lacks any minority representation, consisting only of members sharing the ruling party’s ideology,” he said.
“A fair UCC cannot be drafted by silencing the voices of Muslims, Dalits and backward communities. We urge the government to wake up and include knowledgeable minority experts in this committee to ensure true justice and inclusivity,” said Shaikh.
The ‘Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal’, founded by social reformer-activist Hamid Dalwai, has been seeking UCC since the 1970s, and has supported moves to reform and secularise the community’s personal laws.
Dalwai, an author and founder of the Indian Secular Society, had organised a morcha at the state administrative headquarters in April 1966 by Muslim women at the receiving end of oral, one-sided divorce. The Mandal was launched in March 1970 for social and religious reforms among Muslims, but faced opposition from orthodox sections within the community. The Mandal had also stood by Shah Bano in the landmark case over maintenance for the 60-year-old divorced by her husband.
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