‘Definition of resident in UCC a betrayal to people’: Congress hits out at BJP govt
DEHRADUN: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has betrayed the people with the definition of a resident in the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), the state Congress unit has alleged on Sunday.
State Congress media spokesperson Garima Mehra Dasauni said the state government was deceiving the general public under the guise of the UCC and “selling the state.”
“Under our noses, the BJP government is putting Uttarakhand at stake, selling the country. As per the definition of a resident in the UCC, anyone living in the state for over a year in the state is considered a resident. Such people will be eligible for government jobs and schemes in the state. It is a fraud against the people of Uttarakhand. Before this, the then Trivendra Singh Rawat government weakened the land law in 2018 to allow land vultures to grab land in our state and later the Dhami government tweaked the rules for land use ..... this is the third attack on the interests of locals. There is a major demand for strict land laws and domicile policy, but the state government is deceiving the general public under the guise of the UCC,” she said.
In response, the BJP said the Congress is just spreading lies.
State BJP women wing president Asha Nautiyal said: “The Congress is spreading lies by distorting facts regarding UCC. Congress has become distraught as it is fearing its impending defeat in the Lok Sabha election.”
“I hope that the Election Commission will take suo motu cognizance of it and curb such efforts that poison the atmosphere of Devbhoomi,” Nautiyal said.
President Droupadi Murmu in March gave her assent to the UCC Bill, 2024 that was passed by the state assembly in February to pave the way for the state government to begin the process of implementing the country’s first set of uniform laws governing marriage, divorce, inheritance and maintenance, as CM Dhami termed it a “moment of pride” and assured “equal rights to all”.
“Under Article 201 of the Constitution of India, the Hon’ble President gave assent to the ‘Uniform Civil Code, Uttarakhand, 2024 Bill’ passed by the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, 2024 and it is declared as Act No 3, Year 2024 of Uttarakhand...,” said a gazette notification issued by the state government.
On February 7, Uttarakhand became the first state in the country to pass the UCC Bill, 2024, by voice vote, a day after it was tabled in the House, to override several national laws on personal matters.
A UCC, in theory, will implement homogenous rules for marriage, divorce, inheritance, financial compensation and adoption, among others, for all communities but many activists and experts fear that this may obliterate the customs and traditions of particular communities, such as tribal, and become a proxy to target their faiths.