It was a year ago when the Uttarakhand state implemented a law to enforce the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). Positive results have come in and the law is a resounding success, if statistics are to be believed. Earlier, on an average, only 67 marriages used to be registered daily, but after the new law was implemented, the daily average figure has crossed 1,400. A 20-times quantum jump! In all, nearly five lakh marriages were registered last year in the state.
There has been a big dip in cases of harassment of women in love or marriage relationships. Services for registrations of divorce, will and live-in have been digitally made transparent and easy. More than five lakh applications were received on this digital platform and nearly 95 per cent cases were disposed of. Significantly, not a single complaint of violation of privacy was registered.
Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said this new law on UCC has not only benefited all sections of society, but also given more power to women in particular. When the UCC law was implemented in Uttarakhand, several apprehensions were raised. Some said, this would lead to the State peeking into the privacy of bedrooms and love marriages will be banned.
Some others said that those opting for a live-in relationship will be thrown into jails and Muslims will have to perform "saat pherey" (Hindu ritual of marriage) instead of 'nikaah' (Muslim wedding). All these apprehensions were proved to be baseless. People should wait for implementation before commenting on any new legislation. The Uttarakhand CM has shown the right path. The figures should encourage other states to implement similar UCC laws.
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