Overview
- Gujarat’s legislature passed the Uniform Civil Code on Tuesday by majority voice vote after a debate that stretched more than seven hours.
- The law creates one rulebook for marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships across faiths, with compulsory registration and penalties that include up to seven years in jail for bigamy or marriage by fraud.
- The code requires live-in couples to register within a set window, with fines or up to three months in jail for failing to do so, while marriages must be registered without invalidating the union.
- Coverage noted sharp pushback from Congress and AAP, protests in Ahmedabad with detentions, and claims the bill was rushed for political gain, while the government framed it as a gender-justice reform.
- The statute applies to all state residents, including those living outside Gujarat, exempts Scheduled Tribes and protected customs, and draws on a report led by Justice Ranjana Desai after roughly 20 lakh public submissions, raising fresh questions about implementation and likely court tests.