New Delhi: After BJP leader and Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal recently said that the uniform civil code (UCC) is still on the party’s agenda, the Janata Dal (United), which is the third largest constituent party of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has said that any such move must come through consensus.
JD (U) national secretary KC Tyagi said that while the party is not against UCC, it wants that such a move should come through a consensus, reported The Indian Express.
This assertion by JD (U) is being seen as a clear signal sent by the party to the BJP that important policy decisions such as the UCC cannot be unilaterally taken by the BJP and other NDA coalition partners must be consulted.
Earlier on Tuesday, Meghwal, who was recently made the Union Minister of State (independent charge) for Law and Justice, had said that the UCC was still on the party’s agenda.
“It’s on our agenda. Dekhte jayein aage [keep watching ahead],” Meghwal had told reporters on Tuesday when asked about the UCC.
The BJP’s election manifesto lists implementation of the UCC as the party’s agenda.
But the JD (U), which has 12 MPs in the parliament, reminded the BJP that its stand remains the same on the issue since 2017, when Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had made a submission on UCC to the Law Commission.
“While the State must endeavour to bring in the UCC, such an effort, in order to be enduring and sustainable, must be based on a broad consensus… rather than be imposed by fiat from above,” Kumar had written in his 2017 letter to the Law Commission.
Kumar had said in the letter that India was a “nation based on a delicate balance in respect of laws and governing principles for different religions and ethnic groups,” reported The Indian Express.
He had also reiterated that any attempt to impose UCC could lead to “social friction and erosion of faith in the Constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion”.
The Bihar Chief Minister had also raised objections to the questionnaire sent at that time by the Law Commission, saying that it was framed in such a way that ‘it forced respondents to respond in a specific manner.’
The BJP, which is the biggest constituent of the NDA, doesn’t have a majority of its own in the parliament and needs the support of other parties such as the JD (U) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which has 16 MPs and is the second-largest constituent party in the NDA.
Earlier, TDP leaders had also underlined the importance of discussion and reaching a consensus about issues such as the UCC.
