After Uttarakhand, Gujarat rolls out panel on UCC Bill

After Uttarakhand rolled out its version of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), BJP-ruled Gujarat today announced the constitution of a committee to draft the UCC Bill.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel announced the move in Gandhinagar. “To prepare the draft for the UCC and make the law, a five-member committee under the chairmanship of retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai has been constituted. The committee will submit its report to the state government in 45 days, based on which the government will take a decision,” Patel said.

Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai had also headed the Uttarakhand UCC panel. Other members of the Gujarat committee include retired IAS officer CL Meena, advocate RC Kodekar, former Vice-Chancellor of Veer Narmad South Gujarat University Dakshesh Thakar and social worker Gita Shroff.

Plans to commence work on the UCC in all BJP-ruled states is underway with announcements expected gradually. Uttar Pradesh is also mulling a committee.

The Centre had said that Article 44 of the Constitution says that the state shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a UCC throughout the country. Personal laws such as intestacy and succession, wills, joint family and partition, marriage and divorce relate to Entry 5 of List-III-Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule and hence, the states are also empowered to legislate upon them.