The HC observed that the Supreme Court has time to time reiterated the need for Uniform Civil Code, however, “it is unclear as to what steps have been taken in this regard till date”.
Supporting the introduction of Uniform Civil Code (UCC), the Delhi High Court on Friday said the Indian youth need not be forced to struggle with issues arising due to conflicts in various personal laws in relation to marriage and divorce.
Justice Prathiba M Singh, in an order dated July 7, stated that the modern Indian society was “gradually becoming homogenous, the traditional barriers of religion, community and caste are slowly dissipating” and thus Uniform Civil Code “ought not to remain a mere hope”.
The High Court, while referring to several decisions of the Supreme court on the need for Uniform Civil Code, including the historical Shah Bano case of 1985, said: “The hope expressed in Article 44 of the Constitution that the State shall secure for its citizens Uniform Civil Code ought not to remain a mere hope.”
The Apex Court, in the Shah Bano case, had said that a common civil code would help the cause of national integration by removing disparate loyalties to laws having conflicting ideologies. It had also observed that the State was charged with the duty of securing Uniform Civil Code for the citizens of the country.
The HC observed that the Supreme Court has time to time reiterated the need for Uniform Civil Code, however, “it is unclear as to what steps have been taken in this regard till date”.
The High Court also directed that a copy of the order be communicated to the Secretary, Ministry of Law & Justice, Government of India, for necessary action as deemed appropriate.
The court was hearing a case as to whether the marriage between the parties who belonged to the Meena community were excluded from the ambit of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 (HMA).
When the husband sought divorce, the wife contended that Hindu Marriage Act did not apply to them as Meena community was a notified Scheduled Tribe in Rajasthan.
The top court, while rejecting the wife’s stand, said that cases like the present one “highlight the need for such a Code – ‘common to all’, which would enable uniform principles being applied in respect of aspects such as marriage, divorce, succession etc.”
It recorded that since inception of the litigation, both parties have pleaded that their marriage was solemnised according to Hindu rites and ceremonies and they follow Hindu customs.
The court said that although there was no definition of Hindu, the Supreme Court has held that if members of Tribes are Hinduised, Hindu Marriage Act would be applicable to them.
“Codified statutes and laws provide for various protections to parties against any unregulated practices from being adopted. In this day and age, relegating parties to customary Courts when they themselves admit that they are following Hindu customs and traditions would be antithetical to the purpose behind enacting a statute like the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955,” the court said.
The Delhi HC also stated that there nothing was placed before it to show that the Meena community Tribe has a specialised Court with proper procedures to deal with these issues.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
