Can Uniform Civil Code Bring Gender Justice in India?

Author: Shifa Qureshi, Student, Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University, India

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ABSTRACT Part IV of the Indian Constitution deals with Directive Principles of State Policy, though these are not enforceable in a court of law but are indispensable in the governance of the country. It covers the Uniform Civil Code under Article 44, a debated and most discussed topic today. Distinctive laws govern and administer the religions like the personal matters of Hindus are dealt with the Hindu Marriage Act; the Hindu Succession Act; the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, whereas laws governing personal matters of Muslims are based on the tenets of the Holy Quran such as The Shariat Act, The Dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act, and the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, etc. So also, is the case with the Indian Christians, governed by the Indian Christian Marriage Act, the Indian Divorce Act, and the Cochin Christian Succession Act, etc. Parsis are administered by a diverse set of laws. It depicts the fact that there is no uniformity in all personal laws as depending on religion and gender they confer unequal rights. The Uniform Civil Code implies covering all these personal laws into one unified set of secular laws, that will be applicable for each and every citizen of India irrespective of his/her religious community. But in all these debates the rights of women are ignored. The vulnerability of women to rape and dowry is conditioned by their caste, community, and religious affiliations. Even the religious personal laws do not provide equal status to them. In this paper, we have tried to examine the basic essence of 2of UCC and how it affects Gender Equality.

Keywords: Uniform Civil code, Constitution Debates, Women Rights, Judicial Pronouncements.

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