The Ministry of Law and Justice announced that former Supreme Court judge, Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, has been appointed as the chairperson of the 23rd Law Commission of India. Along with him, advocate Hitesh Jain and law professor D P Verma have been made full-time members of the panel. These appointments were approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The 23rd Law Commission was officially formed on September 1, 2024, just a day after the 22nd Law Commission’s term ended on August 31, 2024. Justice Maheshwari retired from the Supreme Court in May 2023, and now he has officially taken charge as the head of this new commission.

Justice Maheshwari began his career in the judiciary in 2004 as a judge in the Rajasthan High Court. Later, he became the Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court in 2016 and then Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court in 2018. In 2019, he was promoted to the Supreme Court of India.

One of the biggest responsibilities of the 23rd Law Commission is to examine if a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) can be applied in India. The 22nd Commission had already started public discussions and even made a 749-page draft report after 70 public meetings. But the work stopped after its chairperson, Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, was appointed to the Lokpal.

The UCC is one of the key goals of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), along with abrogating Article 370 and building the Ram temple. Right now, Uttarakhand has already implemented a UCC, and Gujarat is working on its draft.

Who are the members, and how long will they serve?

The new commission will have a full-time chairperson, four full-time members (including a member-secretary), and ex-officio members from the legal affairs and legislative departments. The panel may also include up to five part-time members.

Advocate Hitesh Jain and Professor D P Verma will serve as full-time members until August 31, 2027. Professor Verma is a teacher at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and was also part of the previous law panel.

According to government rules, retired chairpersons will get a monthly salary of Rs 2.5 lakh, and members will get Rs 2.25 lakh. This salary includes a pension or other retirement benefits.

 

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