NEW DELHI: After Uttarakhand, Assam and Gujarat, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led West Bengal government is likely to introduce the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill in the Assembly on Monday.Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday formally signalled the government’s intention to move ahead with the legislation during the Monsoon session.”The way it (UCC) was implemented in Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Assam by following a procedure. Similarly, it will be implemented in West Bengal. I will inform the Assembly on Monday,” he had said.The CM’s emphasis on procedure appeared aimed at countering criticism from opponents who have argued that a reform with significant social and legal implications should be preceded by extensive consultations.The legislation seeks to replace religion-based personal laws in matters such as marriage, divorce, succession, inheritance and adoption with a common legal framework applicable to all citizens, while retaining constitutional exemptions available to certain categories.The proposed legislation is expected to dominate the ongoing Budget session and set the stage for a wider debate over identity, equality, secularism, constitutional rights and the relationship between personal laws and state authority.This comes after the BJP, in its ‘Sankalp Patra’, promised to implement the UCC in West Bengal within six months, projecting it as a measure aimed at ensuring equality before the law irrespective of faith. ‘UCC won’t apply to tribals’Ahead of the introduction of the Bill, state BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya asserted that constitutionally protected tribal communities would remain outside its ambit.”The BJP’s position on the UCC is longstanding and unequivocal. It is part of our political commitment and election manifesto,” Bhattacharya said in a social media post on X.Bhattacharya also rejected allegations that the proposed legislation was linked to family-size regulation, saying such provisions were “neither the objective nor a part of the UCC”.Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress has accused the BJP of attempting to use the legislation as a political instrument rather than pursuing genuine legal reform.TMC chairperson and former CM Mamata Banerjee directed the party to mount an aggressive resistance to the Bill inside and outside the Assembly, arguing that the proposal raises larger questions about constitutional morality, social consent and India’s plural character.”The question is whether the UCC is genuinely being brought for the welfare of citizens and constitutional values, or whether it is being used as an instrument of political polarisation,” a senior TMC leader said, reflecting the party’s official position.Leader of the opposition Ritabrata Banerjee, whose rebel faction has challenged Banerjee’s leadership, has also questioned the government’s urgency.”I don’t understand what the hurry is. A matter like the UCC requires extensive discussion and consultation,” Banerjee said recently, arguing that legislation affecting personal laws and family matters should not be rushed through without broader public debate.
