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The Madhya Pradesh government on Monday introduced the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill in the Legislative Assembly on the opening day of the Monsoon Session, triggering strong protests from opposition parties.
Higher Education Minister Gautam Tetwal tabled the Bill after it received approval from the Chief Minister Mohan Yadav-led Cabinet. The Cabinet described the proposed law as a historic step towards ensuring equality and uniformity in personal laws.
Along with the UCC Bill, the government introduced 14 Bills, including the Dhanvantari University Bill, Fire Services Bill, Ease of Doing Business Bill and Cess Amendment Bill.
Key Provisions of the UCC Bill
The UCC Bill proposes uniform rules for marriage, divorce, adoption and inheritance by replacing religion-specific personal laws. It seeks to ban polygamy and Triple Talaq, mandate the registration of marriages and live-in relationships, and provide equal inheritance rights to sons, daughters, widows, widowers, and parents.
Children born out of live-in relationships will be recognised as legitimate and entitled to inheritance rights.
The Bill provides maintenance rights for women abandoned in live-in relationships. It also permits action against those who desert their parents.
Traditional marriage ceremonies such as Saptapadi, Nikah, Anand Karaj and Arya Samaj rites will continue to remain valid.
The Bill proposes to criminalise practices such as Nikah Halala and allows marriages solemnised through force, fraud or concealment of facts to be declared voidable. It also provides grounds for divorce and introduces transparent adoption procedures.
The Bill further bars a person convicted of murdering a property owner from inheriting that property.
A registration system for marriages and divorces with penalties for false declarations has also been proposed.
The tribal community has been exempted from the UCC.
The draft was prepared by a seven-member committee headed by former Supreme Court Justice (Retired) Ranjana Prakash Desai. The committee was constituted on April 27, 2026, after receiving suggestions from over 10 lakh people.
The Bill is expected to witness intense debate during the ongoing Assembly session.
Also Read: Lok Sabha Adjourned Till Noon Following Opposition Protests
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