NEW DELHI: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday slammed the Maharashtra government’s proposed Uniform Civil Code (UCC), alleging that it was aimed at targeting Muslims and imposing a “Hindu Civil Code” on non-Hindu communities.Questioning the government’s approach, Owaisi asked, “Why accept tribal customs but not Muslim practices?” He alleged that the proposed code would restrict Muslims from following their religious practices, particularly those related to marriage and divorce.“This UCC is being brought to stop Muslims from practising their religion. In Islam, marriage is a contract. You are also imposing divorce rules as per the Hindu Marriage Act. All this is being done to target Muslims and snatch their identity,” he said, ANI reported.Owaisi said Nikah was an essential part of marriage under Islam and argued that different religions followed distinct personal laws adding that, “In Islam, marriage is called nikah. It is not a religious ritual. Nikah is a contract, not a lifelong bond.”If there is no nikah, then what is it? If a child is born out of a relationship, does that make it a marriage? No, it is not a marriage, he said.He also argued that the UCC would give legal rights to children born out of live-in relationships, which he said was not permitted under Islamic religious practices.Owaisi made the remarks at a press conference after the Mahayuti government invited public suggestions on implementing the UCC in Maharashtra and released a questionnaire for the consultation.He claimed the questionnaire indicated that the Devendra Fadnavis-led government had already decided to implement the code.“The subject of the press conference today is that the Maharashtra Government has invited opinions from the public to implement UCC. The state government has also prepared a questionnaire for it. This questionnaire, prepared by the Maharashtra government, makes it clear that the Devendra Fadnavis govt will implement the UCC,” he said.Owaisi questioned the questionnaire’s focus on polygamy and extra-judicial divorce, alleging that it did not address the Hindu Undivided Family (HUF).“The questionnaire consists of leading questions on polygamy and extra-judicial divorce. But there is not one question on Hindu Undivided Family,” he said.He compared the proposed exercise with UCC initiatives undertaken by BJP governments in Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Assam and Madhya Pradesh, claiming that these were attempts to impose a “Hindu Civil Code” on non-Hindu communities.“This makes it evident that, much like the initiatives introduced by BJP governments in Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Assam, and Madhya Pradesh under the guise of a ‘Uniform Civil Code,’ this is not a true UCC, but rather a ‘Hindu Civil Code’ that is being imposed upon non-Hindu communities,” Owaisi said.He also objected to the format of the questionnaire, saying most of its questions were framed to elicit yes-or-no responses.“Additionally, if you examine the questionnaire, you will find that the majority of the questions are framed in a ‘yes or no’ format,” he added.
Owaisi also linked the resignation of retired Bombay High court judge RC Chavan to the composition of the exercise. He said Chavan had cited the absence of a member from the minority community as a reason for stepping down.“I believe this is precisely why RC Chavan, a retired judge of the Bombay HC, chose to resign. He had stated that there is no one from the minority community,” he said.“They are talking about implementation in the state of Maharashtra at this juncture, but they are not defining what this ‘uniform’ actually is,” he added.Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis defended his government’s decision to draft a UCC, saying the Constitution directs states to work towards its implementation. Hitting back at Owaisi, Fadnavis said the UCC was rooted in the Directive Principles of State Policy.