Relevance and Need for a Uniform Civil Code in India

Uniform Civil Code is observed as the same set of secular civil laws so as to govern all people irrespective of their religion, caste and tribe. The need for such a code was felt to take into account the constitutional mandate of securing justice and equality for all its citizens. In simple words, Uniform Civil Code was defined as a proposal in which the personal laws of the country should be replaced on the basis of the scriptures and customs of each major religious community in India with a common set governing every citizen. The personal laws vary widely on the basis of their sources, philosophy and application. Therefore, an inherent difficulty and resistance is seen so as to bringing people together and to unite them when they are governed by different religions and personal laws. It is often seen that Communalism breeds discrimination at two levels:• Between people of different religions and Between the two sexes. It was only the Hindu law where its codification was taken forward that too in spited of great protest but till now codification of Muslim law is still a sensitized issue owing to its polarization.