As Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday made a strong pitch for the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), saying it will be implemented in all 21 BJP-led NDA-ruled states before the next parliamentary elections in 2029, the focus has shifted to assembly poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, which has the country’s largest Muslim population in absolute numbers.
While Uttar Pradesh has been a hotbed of Hindutva politics, it was the neighbouring Uttarakhand which became the first state to enact the UCC law in February 2024 and implement it from January 2025.
Amid speculation, the State Law Commission has received no request from the Uttar Pradesh government for brainstorming to prepare a draft on the issue, highly reliable sources told HT.
People familiar with the matter say that before enacting any law, the state government asks the State Law Commission to prepare a draft.
The last draft enacted by the Commission was ‘The Uttar Pradesh Societies Registration Bill, 2024’ in March 2025.
“The office of the State Law Commission has not yet received any request from the state government to prepare a draft of UCC,” said a senior official. Justice Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, a former high court judge, is chairman of the State Law Commission.
The sources in the law commission said the draft, whenever sought, would need wide consultations and study of the Uttarakhand model, which pitches for uniform laws on marriage, divorce, inheritance, live-in relationships, and adaptation to UP’s population size and social diversity.
{{/usCountry}}The sources in the law commission said the draft, whenever sought, would need wide consultations and study of the Uttarakhand model, which pitches for uniform laws on marriage, divorce, inheritance, live-in relationships, and adaptation to UP’s population size and social diversity.
{{/usCountry}}Officials said the commission has the infrastructure and expertise to prepare a draft quickly once the request comes.
Despite being a strong votary of Hindutva politics, chief minister Yogi Adityanath has been silent on the issue.
“The UCC has always been part of the BJP’s core goal and election manifesto, like abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. The party is committed to bringing UCC. Now, after the Union home minister’s statement, the state government will move in this direction,” said Dinesh Pratap Singh, chief spokesperson, state BJP.
A senior BJP functionary said, “It is a prerogative of the government.”
“The narrative around UCC will help the party counter the opposition’s poll plank on caste to some extent,” said a senior BJP leader, putting the 2027 assembly polls in perspective.
Political observers said the BJP may use Uttarakhand’s implementation experience and pending bills from Gujarat, Assam and MP as a template, but UP’s draft would carry larger political weight given its size.
Gujarat, Assam and Madhya Pradesh bills are awaiting presidential assent and notification. Maharashtra, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh have constituted committees to draft UCC legislation.
UCC is part of the troika of core goals of BJP, in addition to Ram Temple and abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu & Kashmir. The party has already achieved the Ram temple and Article 370 abrogation goals.
Article 44 of the Constitution, one of the directive principles of state policy, urges the state to endeavour to secure Uniform Civil Code for citizens.
But personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption continued to be governed by religion-specific personal laws since Independence, till Uttarakhand enacted UCC in February 2024.
Reacting to the buzz on the issue, Congress MP from Saharanpur Imran Masood said Shah’s statement had little practical significance. “It makes no difference whether the UCC is implemented or not. This is a land of traditions and people will continue to follow them. This is merely for the sake of vote-bank politics,” he claimed.
Samajwadi Party MP from Ayodhya Awadhesh Prasad said, “It won’t even become an issue in the UP assembly polls. Instead, the key issues this time will be unemployment, poverty, and healthcare.”