The idea of formulating and operationalising a uniform civil code (UCC) for all citizens of India irrespective of their religions and castes is nothing new, Article 44 of the Indian Constitution directs the state to endeavour in this direction. This needs people’s support and understanding from all sections.
The Constituent Assembly during 1946-50 itself deliberated upon this and has wanted the country to go ahead with this UCC formulation. And even before, in British India, there were attempts in this direction and the governments were always circumspect and did not wish to proceed roughshod and hurt the sentiments of influential leaders of various religions and castes and tribes who considered themselves custodians of religion, culture and customs thereof.
The state’s non-interference with religious customs of people—secularism—has been an old political practice in our country. This fact of secularism, though not the word, was contained in Queen Victoria’s proclamation of November 1, 1, 1958, affirming justice, benevolence and religious tolerance enjoining abstention from interference in religious belief and worship of Indians.
However, these affirmations were rather frequently quite outside the practices and sights of the powers that be. Persistently, administrations have been rather unable to live up to these ideals of political rectitude and impartiality. Or, there has been no preparation or commitment to practice this secularist ideal.
Despite forces of religious conservatism, diehard vigilantism, dogmatism, fanaticism and prescriptive practices, people have carried on with their lives and conduct and reacted duly with common sense and confronted with exigencies and ever developing modern needs. Often, death and destruction at individual and mass scales have been the result, all repugnant to democratic free society norms.
To be realistic, the law does not govern all exigent human circumstances and the latter have their own preponderance, dynamics and compulsions. Forces of modernisation do not wait for the sanctions or religious fatwas of clerics and khap panchayats, egged on by intolerant fathers and brothers.
As generally understood and desired, uniform civil code pertains to practices of marriage, inheritance, apportionment of properties, adoption of children, polygamy and divorce and maintenance for divorcee women, as applicable to all citizens of India without any exception. With regard to these matters, there is manifest discrimination, and women and children are particularly adversely affected.
There should be published draft proposals governing these issues, under the rubric of a uniform civil code, of course keeping in view the wider implications for rule of law and equality before law including discontinuance of gender discrimination in families and work places and services and educational institutions.
Sense of dignity
This code, first and foremost, has to embody an earnest measure to secure dignity and sense of volition and agency to women. This is possible when in both the homes of birth and that of the husband, their status and property share are secure. Or, both sons and daughters are treated alike, vis a vis inheritance and sharing of property and embracing of professions. Coming to marriage, practice of polygamy has to be forsworn solely because it is an affront to the freedom, dignity and status of women; not because it is conferring any advantage to Muslims because of the alleged religious or Koranic sanction.
In fact, there are equally many proportionate cases of Hindu men practicing polygamy, clandestinely and otherwise; and because of socio-economic reasons or compulsions, women are not complaining. Incidentally, accusing Muslims of polygamy in the perspective of increasing their numbers by begetting more children is patently misplaced and indicative of accusers’ ignorance. Four wives have the same number of children whether they marry one husband together or four respective husbands separately. Polygamy has nothing to do with population increase.
Triple talak, divorce by making three oral declarations openly, has gained odious notoriety. And Muslim women have formally opposed this practice and there are several court contentions also in this regard. The Indian public opinion including that among sensitive Muslims is opposed to this triple talak practice and therefore may be quite forsworn in the common civil code. Other matters pertaining to adoption, inter religious marriages may all be brought within a consensus umbrella after due deliberation by the Law Commission and the government in the context of a wide national discussion.
Unfortunately, the issue of uniform civil code has come to be bandied as a Hindu-Muslim adversarial issue. And often, politicians have tended to use this UCC proposal, always only phony, as a device to mobilise Hindus and thus hurl indignities at Muslims as though the latter are coming in the way of revisions in aforesaid civil laws. The main point about these UCC measures is to enhance the dignity of women and citizens generally and promote the practice of justice, equality and rule of law in India.
(The writer was Professor, Maharaja's College, University of Mysore, Mysuru)