The Uniform Civil Code will come into effect in Uttarakhand on January 27, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said on Saturday.

Home Secretary Shailesh Bagauli said the chief minister will launch the Uniform Civil Code portal at 12.30 pm on Monday at the secretariat and rules under the law will be notified in the gazette on the same day, The Hindu reported.

A Uniform Civil Code is a common set of laws governing marriage, divorce, succession and adoption for all citizens. Currently, such personal affairs of different religious and tribal groups are based on community-specific laws, largely derived from religious scripture.

Once implemented, Uttarakhand will become the first Indian state to have a Uniform Civil Code after Independence. A common civil code has been in place in Goa since the Portuguese Civil Code was adopted in 1867.

“UCC will bring uniformity in the society and ensure equal rights and responsibilities of all citizens,” said the chief minister’s office. “Under the Uniform Civil Code, an attempt has been made to bring uniformity in all the laws related to personal civil matters that discriminate on the basis of caste, religion, region and gender.”

The Uttarakhand Cabinet approved the Uniform Civil Code draft report in a meeting chaired by Dhami on February 5, 2024.

Two days later, the Assembly passed the Bill by voice vote after debating it for two days. Lieutenant General Gurmit Singh, the state’s governor, approved the legislation on February 28 last year.

After this, the state government on February 24 formed a Rules Making and Implementation Committee.

On March 14, Dhami announced that President Droupadi Murmu had approved Uttarakhand’s Uniform Civil Code Bill.

The state Cabinet approved the rules manual for the Uniform Civil Code on January 20.

The aim of the Uniform Civil Code is to ensure equality and justice for women who may otherwise be denied their rights under patriarchal personal laws, Uttarakhand’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has claimed.

The introduction of a common personal law has for long been on the BJP’s agenda and several states ruled by the party have been making advances towards implementing it. The implementation of the rules in Uttarakhand could potentially set a precedent for other BJP-ruled states to follow suit.

In its campaign for a Uniform Civil Code, the BJP has mainly targeted Muslim personal law, arguing that it discriminates against women as it allows Muslim men to practice polygamy, inherit a greater share of property, initiate divorce and deny alimony.

However, legal experts have said that the bill is primarily drawn from Hindu personal law and could lead to the erasure of the personal law practices of minority communities.

The Uttarkahand Mahila Morcha, a collective of women’s groups, had criticised the bill for “[following] the Hindu law template.” In a public statement, it noted that the bill is “completely silent on the application of Christian family law and Parsi family law”, describing this as “legally untenable”.

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