The Aryavarth Express
Dehradun (Uttarakhand):
The Uttarakhand Governor’s Office has returned the state’s anti-conversion legislation and the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill to the Legislative Department after identifying clerical errors, state Home Secretary Shailesh Bagoli said on Thursday.
Bagoli clarified that the bills were not rejected but sent back for correction and resubmission. “We have received information that two bills have been returned by the Governor’s office to the Legislative Department. One relates to the anti-conversion law and the other to the Uniform Civil Code,” he said.
The Home Secretary explained that the proposed amendments to the anti-conversion law included provisions for stricter penalties, particularly in cases involving forced or unlawful religious conversions. However, certain clerical mistakes were found in the draft, necessitating its return.
Similarly, the UCC Bill—under which the provision for free marriage registration was extended from six months to one year—also contained clerical errors. “As soon as the bills are received, the concerned departments will immediately correct the errors and resubmit them for further processing and passage,” Bagoli added.
The Uniform Civil Code Act, 2024, seeks to introduce a uniform set of personal laws applicable to all citizens of Uttarakhand, irrespective of religion, gender or caste. The proposed law covers matters related to marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance and succession.
Under the UCC, marriage can be solemnised only if neither party has a living spouse, both are mentally capable of giving valid consent, the man has attained the age of 21 and the woman 18, and the parties are not within prohibited degrees of relationship.
The UCC would apply to all residents of Uttarakhand, with exemptions for Scheduled Tribes notified under Articles 342 and 366(25) of the Constitution, as well as certain protected authority-empowered persons and communities under Part XXI.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion and Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2018, prohibits religious conversions carried out through misrepresentation, force, fraud, undue influence, coercion, allurement or marriage.
