Modi Names Uniform Civil Code as ‘Secular’ to Corner Opposition

Indian PM Narendra Modi pitched for Uniform Civil Code (UCC), framing it as a Secular Civil Code in his Independence Day speech on 15 Aug. He said the framing was to differentiate it from the existing ‘communal civil code.’ The reiteration of this objective was to please the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). UCC is RSS’s project to dismantle the community-specific laws of India’s diverse communities and bring them all under one law. The PM’s use of the word secular is an inversion of ground realities. The RSS and BJP are communal parties committed to Hindutva ideology and have long undermined the concept of secularism. Now the PM is advocating the UCC as a secular law, a tactic aimed at cornering the Opposition and making it difficult for them to argue against it without appearing to reject secularism. The move has been cautiously received by National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies like Janata Dal (United) and Telugu Desam Party (TDP). The Indian Muslim Personal Law Board has announced UCC is not acceptable to them. In the past, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has said the UCC ‘undermines the Sikh identity.’ Though the BJP does not have the numbers to pass such a law in Parliament, they must explain what they will do with the concept of the Hindu Undivided Family (HUF). HUF is a provision for Hindu families — especially businesses that back the BJP — to enjoy tax exemptions on incomes by declaring themselves as descendants from the same ancestor. BJP would be reluctant to dismantle HUF so UCC seems to be another trick to corner the Opposition.