SHIVAMOGGA: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on Friday that the state government is seriously thinking of implementing a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state and thereby ensure equality in the society. Speaking at the inaugural function of the state BJP’s Prashiksha Varga here, Bommai said UCC is a common law which should be applicable to every citizen of the society. “The government does not hesitate to bring in this law in the state”, he asserted.
The Constitution of India lists the UCC among the Directive Principles of State Policy, which makes it a desirable objective, but it is not justiciable. Over the decades, the BJP in particular has pushed for a UCC, and the Supreme Court has on a few occasions expressed itself in favour of it.
It may be recalled here that in May 2022, the Uttarakhand government announced a committee led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Desai to implement a UCC. On October 29, 2022, Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi announced that the government is planning to implement UCC and a committee will be formed in this regard. Assam and Himachal Pradesh too have expressed a similar intent to implement UCC.
Cong is only after power, says Bommai
Now, on Friday, November 25, 2022, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai asserted that the BJP government is considering implementation of a UCC in the state. Training his guns on the Congress, Bommai said, “Congress is only after power. Never have they made any effort to provide equality to all. People know how they treated the Father of Constitution, Dr B R Ambedkar after the constitution was drafted. Ambedkar was denied a party ticket to contest elections and was also denied a piece of land to bury his body. The Congress kept the SCs, STs and the poor as slaves. Now, their mask is off”.
Bommai added that the BJP is committed to its ideology and never compromises on implementing its agenda. He said the government implemented the Cow Slaughter Act to preserve cattle. The government also implemented Punyakoti Dattu Yojane (Cow Adoption Programme) and set up 100 ‘Goshala’ across the state, besides extending monetary support for protection of cattle.
He also said that the party is making efforts to find a harmonious solution to the Datta Peetha issue. He said the government is seeking active participation of people in different fields including in managing religious places.
Throughout his address, Bommai tried to drive home the point on how the BJP is a party with a difference. “The government is operating on three ‘Es’ namely - Education, Employment and Empowerment. It includes providing education to children of all sections of the society, providing employment to the unemployed and empowering youth and women folk”, he said.