Karnataka HC urges Centre, state govts to implement UCC: 'Country needs Uniform Civil Code'
Uniform Civil Code: The strong recommendation came from a single-judge bench presided over by Justice Hanchate Sanjeev Kumar while ruling on a civil appeal involving a property dispute.
Uniform Civil Code: The Karnataka High Court has called on both Parliament and State Legislatures to work together to enact a Uniform Civil Code (UCC). The court emphasised that such a law is crucial for ensuring equality, secularism, and justice for all citizens, particularly women, as envisioned in the Constitution.
The strong recommendation for a Uniform Civil Code came from Justice Hanchate Sanjeev Kumar of the Karnataka High Court while deciding a civil appeal involving a property dispute between the siblings and husband of Shahnaz Begum, a deceased Muslim woman.
The case raised broader questions around inheritance laws governed by personal religious statutes and their implications on gender justice.
What did the court say?
Justice Kumar emphasised that implementing a Uniform Civil Code, as envisioned in Article 44 of the Constitution, would fulfill the ideals enshrined in the Preamble—namely, justice, liberty, equality, fraternity, and national unity.
"The country needs a Uniform Civil Code in respect of Personal Laws and religion," the Court on April 4 observed, "only then the object of Article 14 of the Constitution of India will be achieved."
The Court underscored that although women across India are equal citizens under the Constitution, they are subjected to unequal treatment due to religion-based personal laws.
The bench contrasted inheritance rights under Hindu and Muslim personal laws to illustrate this disparity.
While Hindu law grants daughters equal rights in ancestral property, Muslim personal law distinguishes between brothers and sisters—granting brothers the status of ‘sharers’ while the sisters often fall under the ‘residuary’ category, thereby receiving a lesser share.
Noting that states like Goa and Uttarakhand have already taken steps towards implementing a UCC, the court directed the Registrar General to send a copy of its judgment to the Principal Law Secretaries of both the union government and the Karnataka government, in the hope that legislative efforts toward enacting such a code would be initiated.
The court also highlighted the historical backing for the Uniform Civil Code by prominent leaders and constitutional framers. It referred to speeches by Dr BR Ambedkar, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Dr Rajendra Prasad, T. Krishnamachari, and Maulana Hasrat Mohani, all of whom supported a common civil code to ensure national unity and equality.
(With PTI inputs)
Also Read: BJP protests in Kodagu over cadre's alleged suicide, Siddaramaiah accuses them of politicising death
Also Read: Rajnath Singh inaugurates various infra projects at Karwar naval base in Karnataka