Uttarakhand Governor returns Uniform Civil Code, anti-conversion amendment bills

Uttarakhand Governor Gurmit Singh has returned two significant legislative bills to the Pushkar Singh Dhami-headed state government, including amendments to the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and anti-conversion laws, after detecting typographical and technical errors. The decision has raised questions about the legislative process in the state, with officials stating that the bills will undergo revision before resubmission for approval.

According to sources from the Chief Minister's office, the anti-conversion bill, which proposes stricter punishment for forced religious conversions, contained several clerical mistakes in its draft. The Raj Bhavan has sent the bill back to the relevant administrative department for correction.

"There were some typographical errors in the draft of the bill related to the strict anti-conversion law already in force in Uttarakhand. To address these shortcomings, the Raj Bhavan has returned the bill to the administrative department, i.e., the Department of Religious Affairs and Culture. The department will now correct these errors and send the bill back to the Raj Bhavan for approval, after which it will be implemented through an ordinance," the CMO sources told India Today.

Similarly, an amendment bill of the UCC – which is already in place in Uttarakhand – also had clerical errors. It includes provision for marriage registration and the amendment is aimed at extending the additional time limit of one year for marriage registration.

The Uniform Civil Code was passed in Uttarakhand in January 2024, and further amendments were considered in the Monsoon Session of August 2025 to address aspects such as penalties for entering relationships under false pretences and granting new powers to the Registrar General.

The anti-conversion law, meanwhile, initially enacted in 2018 and amended in 2022, was incorporated with new proposals in 2025 to increase penalties for forced conversions and raise the maximum sentence from ten years to life imprisonment. Government sources tol India Today that the Home Department will address the deficiencies in both bills and submit the revised versions again for the Governor's approval.

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