Uttarakhand HC hears another plea against registration of live-in relationships under UCC

Nainital: The Uttarakhand High Court Friday heard a petition challenging the provision of mandatory registration of live-in relationships in the Uniform Civil Code that was implemented in the state last month.

The petition was heard by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Guhanathan Narendar and Justice Ashish Naithani who clubbed it with a bunch of similar pleas that will be heard again on April 1.

According to the plea filed by a couple who are residents of Maharashtra and Ranikhet in Uttarakhand, the provision of mandatory registration of live-in relationships is "unconstitutional".

Appearing on behalf of the petitioner couple, senior Supreme Court advocate Raju Ramachandran said the registration form for live-in relationships asks for various details in violation of the privacy of the persons filling the form.

The government does not have the right to infringe upon the privacy of any person, he said.

The petitioners' counsel also said the provisions mentioned in the registration forms also reflect a "bias" as such information is not sought even for the registration of marriages.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared before the high court through video conference to present the statements of the state and Central governments on the matter.

While hearing a bunch of similar petitions against the UCC earlier this month, the division bench asked the Central and state governments to file a reply on the matter within six weeks.