On July 5, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) handed over a draft of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to the Law Commission, listing its objections to the proposed legislation and highlighting the rights that enshrined for the community in the Constitution.
The working committee of the Board had approved the draft response on the UCC, and on July 5, it was presented for discussion at a virtual general meeting of the Board that began at 10 am.
Earlier, the Secretary of the Law Commission of India had asked AIMPLB to submit a proper response after soliciting views and ideas from the public regarding the UCC. Responding to the same, the secretary general of AIMPLB said the issue was examined earlier, and the commission’s predecessor reached a conclusion that the UCC was “neither necessary nor desirable”.
The panel also sought six months’ time to prepare an appropriate response by religious organisations, individuals, and public-spirited persons. Previously, the AIMPLB had passed a resolution at its executive meeting saying that the implementation of a UCC was not possible as it would be an ‘unnecessary’ Act.
It added that the Places of Worship Act 1991 should be “maintained and well-implemented”, and religious conversion was a matter of “Freedom of religion”.
Earlier, a meeting of the Parliament’s Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, convened on July 3, sought the views of the Department of Legal Affairs, the Legislative Department, and the Law Commission of India on the June 14 notice issued by the Law Commission, inviting views of stakeholders on the Uniform Civil Code.
Opposition MPs said at the meeting it was necessary to keep in mind that the UCC is not just about one family law but about the matters related to every religion, caste, and community of the society, which is why all sections of the society must be kept in mind.
The UCC, which had been a hot topic that had polarised opinions over the last four years, hit the forefront yet again after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong case for the implementation of uniform legislation at a recent address.
PM Modi said the country cannot run on two laws and that UCC was in keeping with the founding principles and ideals of the Constitution.
“Today people are being instigated in the name of UCC. How can the country run on two (laws)? The Constitution also talks of equal rights…Supreme Court has also asked to implement the UCC. These (Opposition) people are playing vote bank politics,” PM Modi said while addressing booth-level workers in Bhopal.
On June 27, the AIMPLB held an emergency meeting late night after Prime Minister Narendra Modi bats for the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) while addressing BJP workers in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
In the meeting, AIMPLB decided to oppose the UCC. The board members decided that the Muslim law board would present their side in front of the Law Commission on UCC and would also present the documents.
The meeting was attended by AIMPLB president Saifullah Rehmani, Chairman of the Islamic Centre of India and member of AIMPLB Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahali, and AIMPLB lawyers, among others.
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