No decision on implementing Uniform Civil Code as of now: Law Minister

There is a large majority which feels the need to have a UCC to ensure equality and secularism in the country. However some feel it will infringe on their religious identity.

New Delhi, Feb 02: The government has not taken any decision as of now on the implementation of a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju informed the Rajya Sabha, while responding to a query on the implementation of a common law for the country.

Rijiiju said, "as per the information received from the Law Commission, the matter related to the Uniform Civil Code may be taken up by the 22nd Law Commission for its consideration. Therefore no decision on the implementation of a UCC has been taken as of now."

He also informed the Rajya Sabha that the Government has requested the 21st Law Commission of India to examine various issues relating to UCC and make recommendations thereon.

The 21st Law Commission however ended on August 31 2018, the Minister said.

Another query that the Minister answered was on whether the government is heading towards appointing its representatives in the process of appointing judges and whether the government is considering setting up an independent regulator like the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for the appointment of judges.

To this the Law Minister said that in its recent communication dated January 6 2023 to the Supreme Court of India, the Government emphasised the need to finalise the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) in view of various judicial pronouncements and inter-alia suggested that the Search-cum-Evaluation Committee in respect to appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court and Chief Justices of High Courts should consist a representative nominated by the Government of India.

He also said that for the appointment of Judges in the High Courts, the Committee should comprise a representative nominated by the Government of India and a representative of the State Government(s) under the jurisdiction of the High Court as nominated by the Chief Minister(s).

It has been proposed that for appointment and transfer of Chief Justices and Judges of the High Courts, the names recommended by the Chief Ministers can be received by the Search-cum-Evaluation Committee along with the names taken from senior judges outside the Collegium and eligible candidates taken from the database of Judicial Officials and Advocates as maintained by the proposed Secretariat, the Minister also said.

What is Uniform Civil Code:

The UCC is a proposal to replace the personal laws based on scriptures and customs of each major religious community in India. The idea is to put in place a common set of laws to govern every citizen. While a major section feels the need for such a law to set in place equality and secularism, there are others who insist that it will infringe on their religious freedom and cultural identity.