Maharashtra govt plans to table UCC Bill in winter session: CM Fadnavis

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said the state government plans to introduce legislation on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) during the winter session of the state Assembly in Nagpur, once a panel constituted to draft the law submits its report.

Fadnavis said the seven-member committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Desai is working on its recommendations and the government would move ahead with implementation after receiving its report.

“The Maharashtra government has constituted a committee on UCC, and it is working on the matter. We will proceed with implementation as soon as the panel submits its report,” Fadnavis told reporters.

The committee was constituted in July with a six-month deadline to submit its recommendations. Besides Justice Desai, its members include former High Court judges R C Chavan and S G Mehare, former chief secretary D K Jain, former advocate general Virendra Saraf, constitutional expert Ramesh Patange and educationist Suvarna Rawal.

Fadnavis’s remarks came a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said BJP-led NDA governments in 21 states would introduce the UCC before 2029.

Fadnavis hits out at Rahul Gandhi over BRICS row

Fadnavis also criticised Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over the Congress’ objections to the all-vegetarian dinner hosted for BRICS leaders in Delhi, calling the controversy a reflection of a “myopic mindset”.

“BRICS was not organised for a dinner,” Fadnavis said, accusing the opposition of trying to divert attention from India’s diplomatic achievements at the summit.

He said all participating countries had endorsed the New Delhi Declaration, including China and Russia, and pointed to its references to terrorism and Pakistan.

“The New Delhi Declaration was unanimous. China and Russia signed it. Some people get stomach ache because of India’s diplomatic victory, so they bring up issues like food and cultural programmes,” he said.

The Congress had on Sunday accused the BJP of imposing its “deeply problematic” dietary preferences on foreign dignitaries after an entirely vegetarian spread was served at the BRICS gala dinner.

Gandhi, in a social media post, said, “For the record: 80% of Indians are non-vegetarian. Indian non-vegetarian food is delicious. As are my sister's chole bhature.”

(With inputs from PTI)