NEW DELHI, Jan 31: An Indian state ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modis party is set to introduce contentious new common personal laws that will apply across religions next week, a template other state officials say they will look to follow.
Currently, Indias Hindus, Muslims, Christians and large tribal populations can follow their own personal laws and customs, or an optional secular code, for marriage, divorce, adoption and inheritance.
Framing a national common law has been one of the three core, decades-old promises of Modis Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP). It has fulfilled the other two: building a fiercely contested grand Hindu temple, and removing the autonomy of the Muslim-majority region of Jammu and Kashmir.
The northern state of Uttarakhand, nestled in the Himalayan foothills, is expected to unveil a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill next week, officials said. —REUTERS
