A BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) MP (member of the parliament) Kirodi Lal Meena introduced the Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2020 in the Rajya Sabha) the upper house of the Indian Parliament amid protests from Opposition parties.
Opposition members from Trinamool Congress (TMC), Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party (SP), Communist Party of India (CPI), CPI (Marxist), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Congress protested against the introduction of the Bill.
Uniform Civil Code (UCC) calls for the formulation of one law for India, which would apply to all religious communities in matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption. The code comes under Article 44 of the Constitution, which lays down that the state shall endeavor to secure a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.
The Bill will do away with religion-based personal laws in the country including the Sharia laws of the Muslim Board guaranteed under the Indian Constitution.
Implementation of a uniform civil code across the nation was one of the contentious promises pursued by India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.