With the constitution of a drafting committee for the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand, the state's former Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat on Saturday said that it would not scrap anybody's rights or hurt anybody's religious sentiments, adding that it will provide security to all.
This comes a day after Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday announced the formation of a committee for the purpose. Notably, UCC was promised by the BJP in the poll manifesto of the party before the Assembly elections this year.
Speaking to ANI, the former CM said, "This is an important decision. The debate which has erupted that the implementation of UCC will hurt religious sentiments or scrap anybody's rights will not happen. The UCC will not scrap anybody's rights. India is a country where people of various beliefs live together and every one of them is given security."
Laying down the benefits of the legislation for the masses, Rawat said that UCC would put the forced religious conversions to rest thus increasing harmony among people.
"With the implementation of UCC, social harmony would increase. Every person would be governed by one law. Nobody would hurt others' sentiments. The forced religious conversions would suffer a huge blow with the implementation of UCC," he said.
Rawat argued that the laws should be the same for everyone if the same facilities are being enjoyed by all sections of society.
"When there are similar facilities for everyone, the laws should be the same too. The way wrong practices are growing in Uttarakhand, UCC is a necessity for the state. There is a nationwide need for UCC. I feel the other states also will implement it in the coming days," the former CM said.
Meanwhile, the committee formed by the Chief Minister is headed by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai and retired Delhi High Court judge Pramod Kohli with ex-state chief secretaries Shatrughan Singh, Manu Gaud, and Surekha Dangwal as members.
Speaking to ANI, the chief minister said, "Before elections, we had taken an oath to implement a Uniform Civil Code. During our first meeting after the elections, we passed it with everyone's consensus. Committee will prepare a draft soon and we will implement it immediately."
Earlier on May 2, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur also announced that the UCC will be brought into the state soon.
( With inputs from ANI )
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