The Uniform Civil Code is not a state subject, and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami should have discussed the issue with the Centre before making any announcement, Congress stalwart Harish Rawat has said.
Dhami had recently announced that if the Bharatiya Janata Party retained its power then the new government would form a committee to draft a uniform civil code in the state.
The uniform civil code has been a major promise of the BJP and finds its mention in their assembly polls manifesto, as well. Dhami stirred up controversy by making the announcement.
Now, Rawat, who is contesting the Lalkua seat of Nainital constituency for the first time, has commented on the issue. Speaking to News18’s Nikhil Lakhwani, Rawat said the UCC was not an issue in the state. “Either the sitting CM is trying to surpass Prime Minister Narendra Modi, or is trying to replace him,” the leader said.
According to Rawat, local issues in Uttarakhand have always been the main points of electoral battles in the state, and that the UCC did not figure in them.
The Congress leader said that the saffron party was trying ‘very hard’ to change the narrative, but that INC had always brought them ‘back on track’.
CM Dhami, after announcing his intention to introduce the UCC, had told News18, “Uttarakhand shares international boundaries (with Nepal and China). It is necessary to protect the state, culturally… there is a need of a common set of laws for citizens, irrespective of the religion”.
The UCC is one of the poll promises that has recently appeared in the BJP manifesto. Earlier, the BJP promised to amend the anti-conversion law to combat “love jihad” – a term used loosely to describe alleged “forced activity” involving inter-faith relations. Furthermore, the party has promised district-level committees to rein in the unchecked activity of ‘outsiders’ purchasing land and endangering the ‘demography’ of ‘Devbhoomi Uttarakhand.’
However, some in the BJP are skeptical that issues like the UCC and love jihad will help, while some believe that sticking to the ‘Hindutva’ path would ensure the loyalty of the party’s core voters.
Dhami’s announcement had brought in a lot of flak from the opposition. senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid had accused the BJP of polarisation during assembly polls by raking up issues such as the Hijab row and the Uniform Civil Code. He had said it showed that the BJP was “jittery” as its hold over the electorate was slipping, and asserted that the people were beginning to see “through their tricks.”
Hitting out at Dhami over his remarks that the BJP will form a committee to prepare a draft Uniform Civil Code (UCC) if re-elected in the state, Khurshid said they don’t even know what a UCC is and have never articulated what it is.
“Does the UCC mean that the Hindu law will be altered and it would be made compatible with the Islamic law or Christian law, or will Christian or Islamic law be altered to make it compatible with the Hindu law,” he asked.
Khurshid pointed out that there are different religions in the country, including Buddhism and Jainism, that have different personal laws and laws of conduct, and for anyone to say that we will have a UCC, they must first clarify what they mean by it and also make it clear that how it will add to in any way to the quality of national life that we all value and cherish.
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