A day after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) expressed its concern over the Uniform Civil Code’s (UCC) adverse impact on minority and tribal communities, the party on Thursday asked Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to clarify his stand on the proposed UCC.
Senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of misleading the people of Punjab on the sensitive issue of UCC by giving conflicting remarks.
“It is shocking that AAP is trying to mislead Punjabis on the most sensitive issue of UCC with the Punjab AAP unit calling for the implementation of UCC only after taking the views of all religious leaders, States and sections of society into consideration even as the AAP high command had openly declared its support to UCC,” said Mr. Cheema in a statement here.
Referring to the AAP, MP Sandeep Pathak’s remark on justifying the need of a UCC, Mr. Cheema said, “It is clear that AAP’s ‘high command’ has taken a decision to support the implementation of UCC for the entire country without taking its Punjab unit, the Chief Minister or even the Sikh community into confidence. This speaks of how much respect AAP high command has for its Chief Minister in Punjab as well as religious entities of Punjab who were not consulted before extending support to UCC,” he said.
“Double-speak”
Asking the Punjab Chief Minister to clear the air immediately to what he termed “double-speak of the AAP on this issue”, Mr. Cheema said, “You (CM) have been propagating the Anand Marriage Act but it too, will be overridden by the UCC. Moreover, the rights of various religions and tribal communities vis a vis inheritance, marriage and divorce laws will be affected which will cause an upheaval in society that is not in the interest of the country. The Chief Minister must convey the aspirations of Punjabis to the AAP high command and also take a principle stand as per the wishes of the Punjabis on the UCC instead of playing second fiddle to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal,” he said.
