Assam to implement Uniform Civil Code soon but to exempt tribals from its preview

Guwahati: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that after Uttarakhand and Gujarat, Assam will be the third BJP ruled state in India to implement uniform civil code(UCC) but with certain modifications exempting the tribals from its purview.

Mr Sarma while reiterating the commitment of his government also clarified that its model would be different from that being implemented in other BJP ruled states.

He told reporters, “Uttarakhand and Gujarat will bring UCC first and Assam will follow them with some new additions to those Bills, which will be an Assam model.”

Stating that he was waiting for the UCC bill of Uttarakhand, Mr Sarma said, “We will bring the same legislation; but since we are working against child marriages and polygamy also, there will be some innovation to it. In Assam, the tribal community will be exempted from the ambit of the UCC.”

Informing that the bill will be kept for public consultation too, he said, “The bill is a little complicated so it will require wider public consultations. All will depend on the Uttarakhand and Gujarat Bills, but Assam will definitely be the third state (to implement UCC).”

It is significant that many north-eastern states have opposed the UCC. The Nagaland assembly recently adopted an unanimous resolution to exempt the state from UCC. Tribals form 12.45% of Assam’s population, according to the 2011 census. There are three autonomous district/territorial councils (which fall under Sixth Schedule of Constitution) and six autonomous councils for ST communities that are constituted for social, economic, ethic and cultural advancement.

The proposed UCC goes against the actual idea of India, said Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K. Sangma– an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), recently. “The UCC, from the party point of view, goes against the actual idea of India itself,” he said, even as he underscored, “India is a diverse nation, and diversity is our strength.”

While opposing the UCC he stated, “We are a matrilineal society and that is what our strength and culture has been. Now, that cannot be changed for us.”

Expressing his view on UCC he recently said, “As a political party, we realise that the entire Northeast has got unique cultures. We want these to remain and not be touched.”