Bengal set to table UCC, public safety bills today in Assembly

West Bengal introduced a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill in the state Legislative Assembly during the ongoing budget session, aiming to replace religion-specif...

What Happened

West Bengal introduced a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill in the state Legislative Assembly during the ongoing budget session, aiming to replace religion-specific personal laws with a common civil code applicable to all citizens.
The proposed legislation covers matters of marriage registration, prohibition of bigamy and polygamy, live-in relationship registration, and uniform succession rights across religious communities.
Scheduled Tribes are explicitly exempted from the bill's provisions, preserving their customary laws and traditional governance systems protected under the Fifth and Sixth Schedules of the Constitution.
A Public Safety Bill was also tabled alongside the UCC Bill in the same Assembly session.
West Bengal joins a growing number of states (including Uttarakhand and Assam) moving toward state-level UCC legislation, even as a central UCC remains under deliberation.

Static Topic Bridges

Article 44 — Directive Principle on Uniform Civil Code

Article 44, under Part IV (Directive Principles of State Policy, Articles 36–51) of the Constitution, reads: "The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India." Like all DPSPs, it is non-justiciable — courts cannot enforce it — but Article 37 declares it "fundamental in the governance of the country."

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, who advocated for a UCC during the Constituent Assembly debates, agreed to place it under DPSPs rather than Fundamental Rights to respect the religious diversity of the newly independent nation while keeping the aspiration alive for future legislative action.

Part IV (Articles 36–51) contains all Directive Principles.
Article 44 is a positive obligation on the State, not a negative right of citizens.
The Supreme Court has repeatedly invoked Article 44 to urge Parliament to legislate a UCC, most prominently in the Shah Bano (1985) and Sarla Mudgal (1995) cases.

Connection to this news: West Bengal's bill is a state-level attempt to fulfill the Article 44 directive within its own territory, using legislative competence under the Concurrent List.

Personal Laws Framework in India

India's personal law system is a plurality: different religious communities are governed by distinct statutory codes derived from their religious traditions. The major personal law regimes are the Hindu Marriage Act (1955) and Hindu Succession Act (1956) for Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains; the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act (1937) for Muslims; the Indian Christian Marriage Act (1872); and the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act (1936).

"Personal laws" cover marriage, divorce, maintenance, inheritance, adoption, and succession.
These laws are constitutionally protected under Article 25 (freedom of religion) and Article 26 (freedom to manage religious affairs), creating a tension with the Article 44 directive.
The Special Marriage Act (1954) provides a secular, religion-neutral option for inter-faith couples or those who opt out of their personal law.

Connection to this news: A UCC would replace all these parallel codes with a single statutory framework, the central aspiration of the West Bengal bill.

State vs. Centre — Legislative Competence on Personal Laws

Personal laws fall under Entry 5 of the Concurrent List (List III, Seventh Schedule): "Marriage and divorce; infants and minors; adoption; wills, intestacy and succession; joint family and partition; all matters in respect of which parties in judicial proceedings were immediately before the commencement of this Constitution subject to their personal law." Both Parliament and state legislatures can legislate on Concurrent List subjects; in the event of repugnancy, a valid central law prevails (Article 254).

States can enact UCC legislation in the absence of a central UCC law.
Uttarakhand was the first state to enact a UCC (2024); Assam passed its UCC Bill in May 2026.
A central UCC, if enacted, would override any inconsistent state UCC under Article 254.

Connection to this news: West Bengal's move is constitutionally valid as a state exercise of Concurrent List powers, though it could be superseded by future central legislation.

Scheduled Tribes Exemption — Fifth and Sixth Schedule Protections

The Fifth Schedule (Article 244(1)) governs administration of Scheduled Areas in non-northeastern states, giving Governors special powers to regulate or restrict laws. The Sixth Schedule (Article 244(2)) provides autonomous District Councils to tribal communities in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram, empowering them to make laws on marriage, inheritance, and social customs. Both Schedules constitute constitutional recognition that tribal customary law occupies a protected domain.

Tribal communities in Fifth Schedule areas follow customary laws on marriage, inheritance, and land rights that are distinct from Hindu or other personal laws.
The Sixth Schedule areas have autonomous councils with legislative and judicial powers over customary law.
The Sardar Pai Pukur Committee (pre-independence) and subsequent Constituent Assembly debates recognised the need to preserve tribal identity through special constitutional provisions.

Connection to this news: The UCC bill's explicit ST exemption is constitutionally consistent with Fifth/Sixth Schedule protections and mirrors the model adopted in Uttarakhand's and Assam's UCC frameworks.

Landmark Supreme Court Cases on UCC

Two Supreme Court cases are foundational to the UCC debate:

Shah Bano Case (Mohd. Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum, 1985): A five-judge Constitution Bench unanimously held that Section 125 CrPC (maintenance) is a secular law applicable to all citizens, including Muslim women, beyond the iddat period. The Court explicitly lamented that Article 44 remained "a dead letter" and called for a common civil code.

Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India (1995): The Supreme Court held that a Hindu husband converting to Islam to contract a second marriage, without dissolving the first marriage under Hindu law, commits bigamy under the Indian Penal Code. The judgment explicitly called on Parliament to enact a UCC to prevent misuse of personal laws.

Both judgments are advisory in nature — the Court cannot legislate a UCC; only Parliament or state legislatures can.
A third landmark, Shayara Bano v. Union of India (2017), declared instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) unconstitutional.
The 21st Law Commission (2018) uploaded a consultation paper titled "Reforms of Family Law," concluding that a UCC is "neither necessary nor desirable at this stage" and instead recommended internal reform of personal laws to make them gender-neutral.

Connection to this news: The West Bengal bill is a state legislative response to the decades-old judicial exhortation in Shah Bano and Sarla Mudgal for a UCC.

Goa's Model — The Only Existing UCC in India

Goa is currently the only state in India where a Uniform Civil Code is in force. It derives from the Portuguese Civil Code of 1867, introduced in Goa in 1870 during colonial rule. When Goa was incorporated into India in 1961, the Goa, Daman and Diu Administration Act (1962) allowed retention of this code. All citizens of Goa — across religions — are subject to the same laws on marriage, divorce, inheritance, and succession.

The Goa Civil Code predates the Indian Constitution and was retained by legislative choice after liberation.
It prohibits bigamy for all communities (with limited historical exceptions for Hindu men under Codes of Usages and Customs of Gentile Hindus).
Goa is frequently cited as a proof-of-concept for the feasibility of a UCC in a plural society.

Connection to this news: West Bengal's bill, if enacted, would make it the second Indian state to operationalise a UCC (after Uttarakhand, and following Goa's distinct colonial-era model).

Key Facts & Data

Article 44 is in Part IV (DPSPs) of the Constitution; it is non-justiciable.
Personal laws fall under Entry 5, Concurrent List (List III, Seventh Schedule).
Goa has operated under the Portuguese Civil Code (1867) as India's only existing UCC.
Shah Bano case: Mohd. Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano Begum (1985) — five-judge Constitution Bench.
Sarla Mudgal v. Union of India (1995) — Supreme Court called for UCC to prevent misuse of personal laws via religious conversion.
21st Law Commission (2018) consultation paper: "Reforms of Family Law" — recommended against a UCC at this stage, favoured internal reform.
Fifth Schedule (Article 244(1)) governs Scheduled Areas; Sixth Schedule (Article 244(2)) gives autonomous councils to tribal communities in four northeastern states.
Uttarakhand enacted India's first state UCC (2024); Assam passed its UCC Bill in May 2026.
West Bengal's bill exempts Scheduled Tribes, consistent with Fifth/Sixth Schedule protections.