Panel headed by retired SC judge to formulate Bengal UCC bill

Kolkata: The Bengal govt will prepare its draft bill on a uniform civil code (UCC) based on the recommendations of a five-member committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari told the assembly on Monday.

The panel will have four weeks to file its report and the draft bill is likely to be tabled in the House in Aug.The CM clarified that the state’s tribal populations, indigenous groups (moolvasis) and the Kurmi community will be excluded from the purview of the proposed law. The exemptions, aimed at protecting the unique cultural heritage of tribal communities, align with the UCCs adopted by Uttarakhand and Gujarat, Adhikari said.Justice (retd) Desai had led the panels that drafted the UCCs adopted by the two states and is also heading the committees that are preparing such civil codes for MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.Adhikari stressed that the bill will not be drafted from scratch. It will be modelled on the Uttarakhand UCC Act of 2024, Gujarat UCC Act of 2026 and Assam UCC Act of 2026..“BJP’s election manifesto promised a UCC and this government is committed to fulfilling that pledge,” Adhikari said.

“You don’t have any reason to worry. The dream of BJP’s foundational icon, Syama Prasad Mookerjee, was ‘Ek Desh, Ek Bidhan, Ek Nishan’. What we have written in our manifesto will be implemented. The Uniform Civil Code will be enforced in Bengal.”The committee will have a retired IAS officer, a legal expert, a prominent academic and a social worker as members. An additional secretary from the general administration department will coordinate the panel’s administrative functions as member-secretary.The committee’s terms of reference include conducting a comprehensive and scientific study of the various personal and family laws in force in Bengal. It will review existing statutes in a number of thrust areas, including marriage, divorce, maintenance, succession, inheritance, adoption and live-in relationships.The Desai committee in Uttarakhand had considered 2.3 lakh public opinions and the one in Gujarat had factored in 20 lakh opinions before finalising their recommendations.The CM’s announcement was met with protests and slogans from the opposition MLAs, including those in the Trinamool faction led by leader of opposition Ritabrata Banerjee. Responding to the uproar, Adhikari told the opposition members that they could send their objections or recommendations to the Justice Desai committee. He assured the House that the committee would consider all viewpoints before sending its report to the govt.Trinamool spokesperson and Beleghata MLA Kunal Ghosh did not directly oppose the govt’s UCC move. “A lot of people have been exempted, so it is not uniform in the first place. Our moot point is that decisions like this have to be preceded by an extensive dialogue,” he told reporters.Reiterating the govt’s stance, Adhikari concluded, “If anyone has any objections, there is a proper forum to voice them. You can submit your points to the committee with documentary evidence. But remember, we promised UCC to the people of Bengal in our manifesto and we are going to fulfill that promise. It will be implemented, it will be implemented, it will be implemented.”