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The Uniform Civil Code will be implemented in Uttarakhand on Monday, making it the first state in independent India to put into effect such a law, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said.
All preparations have been completed to implement the UCC, including getting approval of the rules for the implementation of the Act and training of officials concerned, Dhami said in a statement.
The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will bring about uniformity in the society and ensure equal rights and responsibilities for all citizens, he said. “UCC is just an offering made by our state in the great yagya being performed by the Prime Minister to make the country a developed, organised, harmonious and self-reliant nation,” he said.
The law’s implementation was a major commitment of the BJP in the run-up to the 2022 Assembly polls which saw the party storm to power for a second consecutive term, something never done by any other party in the state since its creation in 2000.
Dhami had even attributed the historic mandate to the party’s commitment to passing the UCC.
As soon as Dhami formed the government again in March 2022, the state Cabinet at its very first meeting chaired by him cleared a proposal for the formation of an expert committee to draft the law.
An expert committee headed by retired Supreme Court Judge Ranjana Prakash Desai was constituted on May 27, 2022 to prepare the draft of the UCC.
An expert committee headed by former chief secretary Shatrughna Singh, formed to frame the rules and regulations for the implementation of the Act, submitted its report to the state government late last year.
The state Cabinet gave its approval recently and authorised the CM to decide a date for its implementation.
The Congress will hold a rally in Mhow of Madhya Pradesh, the birthplace of BR Ambedkar, on Monday as it aims to boost its social justice narrative and corner the BJP over alleged insult of the Constitution’s chief architect.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, former party chief Rahul Gandhi, general secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh and KC Venugopal, among other senior leaders, are set to attend the ‘Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan’ rally.
Gandhi, who has been unwell for the past few days and could not participate in the ‘Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan’ rally in Karnataka’s Belagavi last week as well as in campaigning for the Delhi Assembly polls, will be addressing his second such rally after his address in the national capital earlier this month.
The Congress has been attempting to strengthen its social justice plank and alleging that the Constitution is under assault.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Ramesh has been demanding that RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat must apologise for the “anti-national statement he delivered on the freedom movement”.
He has claimed that Mahatma Gandhi was being “insulted” and Ambedkar being “attacked”.
Ramesh has called for Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation and for him to tender an apology for his remarks in Parliament on the opposition taking Ambedkar’s name.
The Mhow rally will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Constitution’s adoption and the founding of India’s republic as well as the purported attack on Ambedkar’s legacy by the ruling regime, a party circular had said.
The Congress has been making a strong push to make social justice its central plank, with Rahul Gandhi repeatedly talking about the Congress’ demand of a nationwide caste census and removing the 50 per cent cap on reservation.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will leave for Japan on Monday on a four-day visit to attract investments and invite industrialists to the ‘Global Investors’ Summit’ to be held in Bhopal from February 24, officials said.
“Chief Minister Yadav will leave for Tokyo from Indira Gandhi International Airport New Delhi on January 27 evening and reach Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at around 2:25 am on January 28. The CM will formally meet Indian Ambassador Sibi George at his residence and pay floral tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at his statue in Edogawa city,” a government release said.
“He will participate in a road show and have one-on-one meetings with industrialists of Japan. The CM will be in Kobe and Osaka on January 30 where he will meet the officials of Sysmex company and visit their site. After travelling from Kobe to Osaka, he will hold discussions with officials of Panasonic Energy,” it added.
He will return to India on February 1, the release said.
– With PTI inputs
