NANITAL, Feb 12 : The Uttarakhand High Court on Wednesday asked the central and state governments to respond to two petitions challenging the provisions related to marriage and live-in relationships in the Uniform Civil Code implemented in the state last month.
Hearing the petitions, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Guhanathan Narendar and Ashish Naithani granted the Centre and the state government six weeks’ time to file their replies.
One petition, a PIL, contended that the UCC legitimises live-in relationships and gives it a status equal to marriage while another, a writ petition, said it is difficult for Muslims to follow the code as its provisions related to marriage and inheritance are against the tenets of Islam.
Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta represented the central and state governments in the court via video conferencing.
The PIL filed by advocate Suresh Singh Negi said the UCC will grant a valid status to live-in relationships which are unconstitutional. It will give legitimacy to live-in relationships, granting them a sanctity similar to marriage, it said.
In his PIL, Negi also said while marriage as well as divorce is a lengthy procedure, a live-in relationship only needs an application to enter into a relationship or be terminated. This may lead to a menace in the society where marriages would be under threat and people would prefer to stay in live-in relationships, he said.
Under the UCC, mandatory registration is required to be done within 30 days of entering into a live-in relationship. Failure to do so can result in imprisonment of three months or a fine of Rs 10,000, he said.
However, the termination of the relationship requires 15 days with an application before the registrar, the PIL said. The UCC provides that the age to enter into a relationship is 18 years wherein the couple has right to adopt a child and any child born out of the relationship will be a legitimate child.
On the other hand, the age of a man and a woman should be 21 and 18 years to enter into a marriage. This causes friction between the two laws governing live-in relationships and marriage, the PIL said.
Negi who filed the PIL in person said that the UCC has been made to govern and regulate the civil life of the state.
The writ petition filed by Almasuddin Siddiqui said that the petitioner who is of Muslim faith finds it difficult to follow the provisions of marriage, divorce and inheritance in the UCC which are different from those provided in the Quran.
It was further said in the petition that UCC is in violation of Article 25 and Article 14 of the Constitution of India as it does not apply to Scheduled Tribes. Article 25 provides right to freedom of religion and Article 14 provides for equality before law. The writ also challenged the “arbitrariness” of mandatory registration of live-in relationships.
Uttarakhand became the first state in independent India to implement the UCC on January 27.
It was the fulfilment of a major commitment made by the BJP government to the people of the state ahead of the 2022 assembly polls which saw the party storm to power for a second consecutive term with a big mandate.
Though the UCC has been brought into force, scepticism prevails among various sections about how people respond to it and the way it is implemented on ground.
Legal experts feel it will be an infringement on people’s right to privacy.( PTI)
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