Uniform Civil Code & CAA: An Advocate’s View After Four Decades at the Bar

As someone who has witnessed India’s constitutional evolution across four decades in the legal field, the recent debates swirling around the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) command both reflection and candor. These topics stir not only legal complexity but also tap deep into the ethos and anxieties of India’s social fabric.

The Uniform Civil Code: Marching Towards Equality or Stoking Division?

The UCC’s implementation by Uttarakhand in January 2025 marks a bold legislative experiment. The state aims for uniformity in personal laws—marriage, divorce, inheritance, and family relations—across faiths, fulfilling a vision once expressed in Article 44 of our Constitution. In intent, it seeks gender justice, equal property rights, and eradication of discriminatory practices like triple talaq. On paper, who would argue against equal protection of the laws?jurist+2

Yet, experience teaches that social reform—especially where faith and identity are concerned—rarely flows smoothly from statute books to lived reality. Muslim bodies and minority groups rightly feel their traditions are threatened, with fears of majoritarian overreach not easily calmed by assurances. The provision for criminal penalties on failing to register live-in relationships, for instance, risks undue interference in personal liberty and invites challenge in the courts.juscorpus

To me, the UCC is an inevitability for a truly secular Republic, but its rollout must be gradual, participatory, and supported by massive public education. The fine balance between social progress and respect for plural traditions is India’s hallmark. Lawmakers will do well to remember: unanimity in code does not guarantee unity in society.jagranjosh+2

The Citizenship Amendment Act: Hopeful Restitution or Exclusionary Politics?

The CAA, by providing accelerated citizenship to persecuted minorities from neighbouring countries (but notably omitting Muslims), marks a sharp turn in India’s historic approach to refugees and secularism. Supporters view it as a humanitarian corrective for Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis, Jains, and Christians who have suffered religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. Yet, as an advocate, the principle of non-discrimination is fundamental to my reading of our Constitutional compact.

To single out communities—however well intentioned—opens a Pandora’s box of challenge for the courts. Can State policy be fair if it excludes? The judiciary continues to hear constitutional challenges to the CAA, reflecting society’s anxiety that migration policy should not become a test of faith.

My experience suggests the way forward is through dialogue, procedural fairness, and a reaffirmation of India’s plural identity. A state as vast and diverse as ours cannot allow its laws—however well-meaning—to become lightning rods for communal division.

My Counsel, Earned Over the Years

For young lawyers and citizens alike, I offer this: Social change is as much about healing as it is about reform. The UCC and CAA hold out the promise of greater equality, but must remain subject to constitutional values of liberty, equality, and fraternity. Our work is to guard those values—no matter the government of the day.

India’s progress lies not in simplicity of code, but in the complexity of compassion. Let us advocate with courage, but judge with empathy.

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References:

• Uttarakhand UCC implementation and constitutional provisionsddnews+3

• Key arguments and criticisms surrounding both UCC and CAAaljazeera+2

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1. https://ucc.uk.gov.in/server/file/uploads/shared-files/ucc-rules-en.pdf
2. https://www.jurist.org/news/2025/01/india-uttarakhand-becomes-first-state-to-implement-the-uniform-civil-code/
3. https://www.juscorpus.com/uniform-civil-code-in-india-recent-legislative-moves-legal-hurdles/
4. https://visionias.in/current-affairs/monthly-magazine/2024-04-15/polity-and-governance/uniform-civil-code-ucc
5. https://ddnews.gov.in/en/uttarakhand-becomes-first-state-to-implement-uniform-civil-code/
6. https://www.jagranjosh.com/general-knowledge/why-did-uttarakhand-implement-the-uniform-civil-code-first-1737962530-1
7. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/1/27/indias-bjp-ruled-uttarakhand-implements-totally-biased-common-civil-code
8. https://uccgujarat.in
9. https://juriscentre.com/2025/07/09/uniform-civil-code-in-india-constitutional-implications-and-contemporary-challenges/
10. https://vajiramandravi.com/upsc-exam/uniform-civil-code/