NEW DELHI: Ten months after the Uttarakhand Assembly passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill mandating compulsory registration of marriages and live-in relationships, the state Cabinet today approved the rules needed to implement the law.
After a meeting, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the date for implementation of the law would be announced soon. President Droupadi Murmu had granted assent to the Bill on February 13 last year.
The BJP-ruled state is planning to roll out the UCC on Republic Day this year, becoming the first in the country to implement a uniform personal law.
Dhami said the training process for the UCC implementation was almost complete and the Cabinet today discussed implementing the law as soon as possible.
“After reviewing everything, we will soon announce its implementation date,” the CM said. The state government is said to be waiting for municipal elections slated for January 23 with results on January 25 to conclude to make the rollout announcement.
The rules approved by the Cabinet will lay down the procedures needed to implement key provisions of the Uttarakhand UCC law.
Compulsory registration of marriages and all live-in relationships, ban on polygamy, polyandry, nikah halala and discriminatory marital practices across faiths, jail terms and fines for violations are part of the state’s UCC Act.
The rules, sources say, will detail what documents live-in partners will need to submit for registration, where and by what period.
The rules will also lay down the inputs family courts adjudicating matters related to personal laws need to factor in while deciding the disputes. The code covers all Uttarakhand people, whether they reside in the state or not, but exempts Scheduled Tribes, who are 3 per cent of the state’s population. It gives protection for children in live-in relations and entitles a woman deserted by a live-in partner to maintenance by courts.
The Bill has 392 sections and 172 pages, and makes a maiden legislative attempt in India to regulate live-in ties. It is, however, silent on recommending same-sex marriages.
The code also does not cover adoptions. It covers child custody and maintenance issues arising from marital disputes with the rules approved today laying the ground for how to proceed in these matters.
On live-in ties, the UCC Act of Uttarakhand says: “It shall be obligatory for partners to live-in relationship within the state, whether they are residents of Uttarakhand or not, to submit a statement to the registrar within whose jurisdiction they are living. Residents of Uttarakhand staying in a living relationship outside the state may submit a statement to the registrar under whose jurisdiction they ordinarily live.
The code adds: “Any child of a live-in relationship shall be a legitimate child of the couple.”
Partners will also need to register the termination of a live-in relationship. The state will appoint a registrar to maintain such a register of live-in relationships with the registrar mandated by law to inform local cops of such ties and also inform parents/guardians of partners if either of the two are under 21 years.
Anyone staying in a live-in relationship for over a month without submitting a statement will be punishable with imprisonment that may extend to three months or with fine up to Rs 10,000 or both.