Overview
- The Assam Legislative Assembly passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill by voice vote on Wednesday, May 27, 2026, approving a single legal framework for marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships for non-tribal residents.
- The law bans polygamy, makes marriage and live-in relationship registration mandatory and sets criminal penalties including up to seven years for bigamy and fines for failure to register.
- Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and ruling party legislators framed the move as a fulfilment of party promises and a step for gender justice while opposition parties protested the fast-tracked process and demanded wider consultations.
- The bill expressly exempts Scheduled Tribes in Assam to protect customary tribal systems, and the state government says formal rules and implementation steps could take roughly three to six months after gubernatorial and presidential assent.
- The passage makes Assam the first North Eastern state and the third state after Uttarakhand and Gujarat to enact a UCC-style law, a development likely to prompt legal challenges and renewed national debate over religious freedom, enforcement and privacy.