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In his first public push for a Uniform Civil Code, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday that the country cannot have separate laws for its people, and that the Constitution obligates the State to secure a UCC for its citizens.
Addressing BJP booth-level workers at a party event called ‘Mera Booth, Sabse Mazboot’ in Madhya Pradesh where Assembly elections are due later this year, Modi said the Opposition was trying to “instigate” Muslims on the UCC issue while not caring for their welfare.
“Today we are witnessing how efforts are being made to instigate people in the name of a Uniform Civil Code. Tell me, if in one house, there is one law for one family member and another for another family member, can that house function?… How can a country function with such a dual system? We must remember that the Indian Constitution also speaks of equal rights for citizens,” he said.
“These people accuse us… But the truth is that these people are the ones who say Musalman, Musalman,” he said, adding: “If they genuinely cared about the welfare of Muslims, then most families, my Muslim brothers and sisters, would not lag behind in education and employment, and they would not be forced to live a life of hardships. The Supreme Court has repeatedly said, Supreme Court danda maarti hai (wields a stick), says bring a Uniform Civil Code. But people hungry for vote-bank politics are the ones causing difficulties for our marginalised Muslim brothers and sisters.”
His remarks were in response to a question by a UP-based booth worker, Rani Chaurasiya, who asked him how to clear misconceptions about triple talaq and the UCC among the Muslim community.
With his remarks on the UCC, the outreach to Muslims, and his description of rival parties as one entity bound by nepotism and corruption, the Prime Minister appeared to have set the tone for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The UCC is the last of the three issues at the heart of the BJP’s ideological agenda – the other two being the Ram temple in Ayodhya, construction of which is underway; and removal of Article 370 in J&K, done in 2019.
Earlier this month, the Law Commission invited suggestions within 30 days regarding a UCC, and the Opposition read it as a signal that the contentious issue was on the Modi government’s agenda.
A number of state BJP governments – Goa, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh – have already begun efforts to bring a UCC in their states. BJP sources said the party is confident of numbers to pass a UCC if a law for it is brought to Parliament, following a report from the Law Commission. The sources suggested that the issue could come up in the winter session of the House.
But there are hurdles too. Tribal groups have reservations on the UCC. More than 30 tribal organisations in Jharkhand alone want the Law Commission to withdraw the UCC idea.
For the BJP, tribal communities form a crucial support base in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan where Assembly elections are due later this year.
In Mizoram, another state that will go to polls soon, the Assembly has passed a unanimous resolution opposing any move to implement the UCC.
At the same time, the UCC also has the potential to divide non-BJP parties and be a stumbling block in unity efforts. Parties like AAP and BJD do not have objections to the UCC while the JD(U) wants a discussion on the matter.
In Bhopal, speaking on the issue of triple talaq, Modi said, “I think we need to study a little to understand that those who speak in favour of triple talaq, advocate for triple talaq, these vote-hungry individuals are causing great injustice to Muslim daughters.”
He said the “damage caused by triple talaq is not limited to daughters alone, its scope is even greater”.
“Sending a daughter to her marital home with many aspirations and then divorcing her by saying triple talaq after 8-10 years, what will happen to those parents whose daughter returns home? The brother, the father, all of them become so sorrowful and worried about the daughter. So, it is incorrect to say that triple talaq is an injustice only to daughters. The entire family gets destroyed because of it,” he said, adding that if triple talaq was related to Islam, a majority of Muslim countries would not have abolished it.
“I was in Egypt two days ago. Egypt has over 90 per cent Sunni Muslim population. The practice of triple talaq was abolished there 80-90 years ago. If triple talaq was an essential part of Islam, why is it not present in Pakistan, Indonesia, Qatar, Jordan, Syria, Bangladesh and other Muslim-majority countries? Some people, by hanging the noose of triple talaq over Muslim daughters, always want to have the licence to oppress them… I know that’s why my Muslim sisters and daughters are standing with the BJP and Modi. Muslim brothers and sisters also need to understand which political parties are ruining them for their own gains,” he said.
Pasmanda Muslims, he said, have been “subjected to such oppression, yet there has never been a discussion about it in the country”. “They still do not receive equal rights and are considered untouchables… However, BJP is working with the spirit of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’… When BJP workers visit Muslim brothers and sisters with these facts and arguments, they will explain it to them in a better way and dispel their misconceptions as well.”
Modi also took aim at the Opposition over its meeting in Patna: “These days, a new word is becoming very popular. That word is guarantee. It is the responsibility of BJP workers to inform people about the guarantee of the Opposition. All these parties guarantee corruption… A few days ago, there was a photo session programme for this. If you look at the parties participating in it, you will realise they collectively guarantee scams worth at least Rs 20 lakh crore.”
He said if they have a guarantee of scams, even he has a guarantee. “I guarantee that there will be action against every corrupt individual. There will be action against every thief and looter. Those who have looted the poor, those who have looted the country, will be held accountable. Today, when the law is being enforced, when jail bars are visible, that’s when their jugalbandi (conniving) is taking place. Their common minimum programme is to escape action against corruption.”
“You see, when a criminal comes back to the village after serving a sentence in jail, what is the attitude towards him? People who fear going to jail approach him, eager to know what jail is like. What could be better than Patna? Today, we are witnessing that many people who are out on bail, who are accused of scams and corruption, are meeting with such individuals. Those who are serving sentences or have experienced jail, they are trying to save each other,” Modi said.
“The anxiety of Opposition parties and their actions clearly indicate that the people of the country have made up their minds to bring the BJP back in the 2024 elections. The resounding victory of the BJP is certain in 2024. That is why all these Opposition parties are in a state of panic. They have decided to deceive the public, appease certain individuals, make false accusations, and attain power by any means possible a few months before the elections,” he said, adding that the BJP decided “not to walk the path of appeasement” since this “may bring benefits for a few days, but it is a great destroyer for the country”.
Instead of appeasement, the PM said “the right path is santushtikaran (satisfaction)”.
“Wherever the BJP is in power in the country today, we are dedicated to satisfaction… There will be no discrimination, no casteism, no nepotism,” he said.
Wrapping up his speech, Modi said: “If you want to ensure the development of the Gandhi children, vote for the Congress. If you want to do good for Mulayam Singh’s son, vote for the Samajwadi Party. If you want to do good for Lalu’s family, vote for the RJD. If you want to do good for Sharad Pawar’s daughter, vote for NCP. If you want to do good for Abdullah’s family, vote for the National Conference. If you want to do good for Karunanidhi’s grandchildren, vote for DMK. You want to do good for Chandrashekar Rao’s daughter, vote for the TRS. But if you want to do good for your own sons, daughters, grandchildren, relatives, and your family’s children, then vote for the BJP.”
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