– Mohammed Atherulla Shariff
The chief minister of Tamil Nadu M.K. Stalin has termed the enacting of Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand as a historic blunder which paves the way for other states to join in depriving the rights of minorities, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
As per the DMK mouthpiece Murasoli, Uttarakhand made the first mistake. Implementation of the UCC would gradually lead to discarding of special laws provided to the oppressed classes and will destabilize the reservation policy, says the editorial.
The Uniform Civil Code bill passed in the Uttarakhand Assembly presents common law for marriage, divorce, inheritance of property, etc. and this goes against the diverse nature of India which is endowed with multiple languages, races, religions, cultures and traditions, it said.
The DMK chief has accused the BJP government at the Centre for pursuing the agenda of targeting minorities for its political gains.
The editorial further added that the step taken by Uttarakhand government violates the provisions of Article 25 of the Constitution of India, which guarantees freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. Besides Article 29 of the Constitution says any section of citizens residing in India shall have the right to conserve its distinct language, script or culture.
