The Cabinet led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami approved the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) manual during a meeting at the state secretariat. The dates for its implementation will be announced soon. The approval came after making some changes to the recently prepared rules for implementing the UCC. The amended rules were examined by the Law Department before being finalised during the Cabinet meeting.

Chief Minister Dhami emphasises commitment to UCC

After the meeting, Chief Minister Dhami spoke to the media and confirmed that the government is committed to bringing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). He said, "We had promised the people of Uttarakhand during the 2022 elections that the UCC will be implemented as soon as our government is formed. We brought it, the draft committee draughted it, and it was passed. The President then approved it, and it became an act. The process of training is also almost complete."

He also shared that Uttarakhand would be the first state in India to introduce the UCC. "We have completed analysing it and discussed it in the Cabinet today. The dates will be announced soon. Since we are setting a precedent, it is essential to thoroughly examine and prepare for its implementation."

What is UCC?

The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) seeks to create a single set of laws for everyone in India, covering areas like marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, and maintenance. While there is already a uniform law for criminal matters, there is no common law for civil issues right now.

The UCC does not apply to tribal communities and aims to stop practices like ‘halala,’ ‘iddat,’ and ‘talaq’ under Muslim Personal Law.

The road to UCC in Uttarakhand

The UCC has 392 rules that are divided into seven parts. It was created by a team of five experts in June 2022. The Uttarakhand State Cabinet and Assembly approved the plan, and it was then approved by the state’s governor, Lt. Gen. Gurmit Singh, in February 2024. This made the UCC a very important law in the state’s history.