A view of Delhi High Court, in New Delhi. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Delhi High Court mentioned on April 25 the petition by lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay in search of implementation of a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) was prima facie not maintainable and requested him to place before it the prayers made by him before the Supreme Court in similar issues.
“You file those prayers. We will see. It is prima facie not maintainable. We will first see if it is maintainable,” a Bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad advised Mr. Upadhyay.
The courtroom was knowledgeable that in March the highest courtroom refused to entertain petitions by Mr. Upadhyay in respect of gender impartial and faith impartial legal guidelines observing that these fell throughout the legislative area and that he had even withdrawn a plea from there in relation to UCC in 2015.
The courtroom remarked {that a} “simpliciter withdrawal” has to be distinguished from a “withdrawal with liberty” to strategy a courtroom with the identical grievance and directed the petitioner to file the prayers in these issues in 4 weeks.
Lawyer M. R. Shamshad, representing the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, mentioned he was the intervenor within the case and the Supreme Court has rejected Mr. Upadhyay’s petitions on the identical material.
“He filed four petitions in Supreme Court which were dismissed….This was his second round,” he mentioned. Mr. Upadhyay mentioned his pleas before the apex courtroom involved talaq (divorce) beneath the Muslim legislation and he was awaiting the response of the Law Commission.
In May 2019, the High Court had sought the Centre’s response to Mr. Upadhyay’s petition in search of structure of a judicial fee to draft the UCC so as to promote nationwide integration, gender justice and equality, and dignity of ladies.
Besides Mr. Upadhyay’s petition, there are 4 others petitions as nicely which have contended that India “urgently needs a Uniform Civil Code”.
The petitioners have contended that gender justice and gender equality, assured beneath Articles 14-15 of the Constitution and dignity of ladies, assured beneath Article 21 of the Constitution, can’t be secured with out implementing Article 44 (the State shall endeavour to safe for residents a UCC all through the territory of India).
The petitions have claimed that the UCC, with a typical algorithm governing each citizen of the nation, will substitute the non-public legal guidelines, that are based mostly on the scriptures and customs of varied spiritual communities.
In response, the Centre has mentioned residents from totally different religions and denominations following totally different property and matrimonial legal guidelines is an affront to the nation’s unity and the Uniform Civil Code will end result within the integration of India.
It has, nevertheless, acknowledged {that a} petition will not be maintainable for formulation of the UCC as it’s a “matter of policy”, which has to be determined by the elected representatives of the folks and no path might be issued on this regard.
The Centre has asserted it would study in session with stakeholders the difficulty of formulating the Code after it receives the report of the legislation fee. The matter shall be heard subsequent on August 3.
