Supreme Court rejects plea challenging states setting up committees for introducing Uniform Civil Code

The Supreme Court refused to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the decision of the governments of Gujarat and Uttarakhand to create a committee to introduce the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).

A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and P S Narasimha ruled that it could not be challenged as being extra vires the Constitution since it was within the authority of the state under Article 162, which deals with the scope of a state's executive power. "What's the problem? "They have formed a committee using their administrative powers under Article 162...," CJI Chandrachud stated.

The bench also stated that "marriage and divorce; infants and minors; adoption; wills, intestacy, and succession; joint family and partition; all matters in respect of which parties in judicial proceedings were subject to their personal law immediately before the commencement of this Constitution" fall under Entry 5 of the concurrent list. The Centre and the states can both pass legislation on the issues included in the concurrent list.

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Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi said on October 29, 2022, that the state cabinet has resolved to create a committee to implement a UCC in the state.

On the other hand, the Uttarakhand government had constituted a committee of experts "to examine the relevant laws regulating personal civil matters of residents of the state and to prepare draught law/laws or suggest changes in existing laws on the subject that includes marriage, divorce, property rights, succession/inheritance, adoption, maintenance, custody and guardianship". The committee was to submit a report on the state's implementation of a UCC.