On June 27, in Bhopal, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi advocated that a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) be implemented, he was seeking to accomplish the last of the three core ideological agendas that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has campaigned for years. The abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution and construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya are the other two. But why is it the BJP so eager to have a UCC while its exclusionary majoritarian ideology considers inequality between the majority and minority population as legitimate? In Bhopal, Mr. Modi asked: How could it be possible to run a family (the nation) with disparate laws for its different members (communities)? B.R. Ambedkar asked similar questions: Why should Hindu religion have four castes? And why do some caste groups dominate and humiliate others, particularly Dalits? The fate of India’s egalitarian pursuit would ultimately depend on the resolutions of these two inter- twined questions. But the Hindu Right seems to be overenthusiastic about the UCC, and shows no concern for Ambedkar’s question on caste inequalities. Though the Constitution recommends a UCC, the fact is that a UCC has been seen as a communal agenda for a long time. Even well-known, secular public intellectuals have chosen to shy away from taking a clear stand in its favour.
Personal law and gender
India may be moving towards majoritarianism, but the arc of democracy is increasingly bending towards multiculturalism. Many Western liberal democracies, and not just India, are wrestling with the issue of gender equality, which is at the crux of a UCC. For instance, the French courts deal with such cases that often come from Muslim immigrants from Morocco and Algeria. Canada, Australia, and the U.S. often use religious-based alternative dispute resolutions. India could learn from such efforts.
