Uniform Civil Code to be implemented today in Uttarakhand, know what it means

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has announced that the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will be implemented in Uttarakhand today (January 27, 2025). The UCC portal will be launched at 12:30 p.m. on January 27 at the Secretariat. Uttarakhand will be the first state in independent India to implement the UCC. 

The Uttarakhand government has implemented the Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code Act, 2024, establishing a streamlined framework for the creation and cancellation of wills and supplementary documents, known as codicils, under testamentary succession.

Uttarakhand government on Wednesday notified the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) which contains clarity of legal provisions for marital conditions and protection of individual rights and social harmony, an official statement read. According to the state government, this act applies to the entire area of the state of Uttarakhand and is also effective on the residents of the state living outside Uttarakhand.

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Uttarakhand has become the first state in India to implement a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), aiming to simplify and standardize personal laws related to marriage, divorce, succession, and inheritance. The UCC applies to all residents of Uttarakhand, except Scheduled Tribes and protected authority-empowered persons and communities.

This Act does not apply to the Scheduled Tribes (ST) notified under Article 342 and Article 366 (25) of the Constitution and protected authority-empowered persons and communities under Part XXI have also been excluded from its purview.

To streamline and simplify the legal processes related to marriage, a public welfare system promoting the protection of individual rights and social harmony has been provided in the Uniform Civil Code Act, 2024 of Uttarakhand, the statement added. 

Under this, marriage can be solemnised only between those parties, none of whom has a living spouse, both are mentally capable of giving legal permission, the man should have completed at least 21 years of age and the woman 18 years of age and they should not be in the ambit of prohibited relationships.

Marriage rituals can be performed in any form under religious customs or legal provisions, but it is mandatory to register marriages taking place after the implementation of the Act within 60 days. Whereas marriages taking place from March 26, 2010, to the implementation of the Act will have to be registered within 6 months. Those who have already registered as per the prescribed standards, although they are not required to register again, will still have to acknowledge the registration done earlier.

Marriages solemnised before March 26, 2010, or outside the state of Uttarakhand, where both the parties have been living together since then and fulfil all the legal eligibility criteria, can (although it is not mandatory) get registered within six months of the coming into force of the Act, said an official statement. Similarly, the work of acceptance and acknowledgement of marriage registration is also required to be completed promptly. After receiving the application, the sub-registrar has to make an appropriate decision within 15 days.

According to the statement, if no decision is taken on the application related to marriage registration within the prescribed period of 15 days, then that application is automatically forwarded to the registrar; whereas, in case of acknowledgement, the application will be considered automatically accepted after the same period. 

Along with this, a transparent appeal process is also available if the registration application is rejected. There is a provision of penalty for giving false information for registration under the Act and it has also been clarified that the marriage will not be considered invalid merely due to non-registration. Registration can be done both online and offline.

To implement these provisions, the state government will appoint a registrar general, Registration and sub-registrar, who will ensure the maintenance and monitoring of the relevant records. This Act also lays down who can marry and how marriages are to be solemnised and also provides clear provisions on how both new and old marriages can be legally recognised, the statement added. 

Earlier the Uttarakhand Government's Information Technology Development Agency (ITDA) conducted a mock drill for the Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code Portal, marking a significant step in the portal's operational readiness ahead of its official rollout. 

(With inputs from ANI)