Fadnavis Defends Maharashtra’s UCC Plan as a ‘Constitutional Responsibility’, Hits Back at Owaisi and Rahul Gandhi
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis said the Directive Principles ask states to bring a Uniform Civil Code and accused the Opposition of trying to stir street protests.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has defended his government’s decision to draft a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), saying the Constitution itself asks states to work towards one, according to a PTI report carried by ThePrint. He was speaking in Mumbai on Tuesday, 10 November.
Fadnavis said the UCC flows from the Directive Principles of State Policy, one of which asks every state to bring in a common civil code, and described it as a constitutional responsibility. He acknowledged that, unlike fundamental rights, Directive Principles cannot be enforced through the courts, because putting them into practice takes time and public consensus.
Response to critics
The Chief Minister hit back at AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, arguing that because the Constitution directs a UCC, the move cannot be outside its framework. He also rejected Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s charge that the BJP was weakening democratic institutions and was worried about the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Fadnavis accused the Opposition of trying to stage street protests like those seen in neighbouring countries. If the Opposition chose the streets over Parliament, he said, the BJP was ready to take to the streets too, adding that such protests would make no difference. He alleged that the Opposition was questioning and demonising institutions including the Supreme Court, the Election Commission, Parliament, the CAG and the RBI to build a conspiracy narrative and weaken public trust in them.
Other remarks
On the Maharashtra Special Public Security Act, introduced to curb what the government calls urban Naxalism, he said the law had been enacted only recently and its implementation was at an early stage, adding that nine other states had passed similar laws. Asked whether it was harder to run a government of three parties in the Mahayuti alliance than one of two, he said political challenges were part of governance.
Featured image: Mantralay of Mumbai, Administrative Headquarters 03 by Pinakpani, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Sources
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