In the latest development in the UCC bill in West Bengal, the government has formed a nine-member expert committee which is headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai. The committee will examine all the issues pertaining to the Draft Uniform Civil Code (UCC) 2026 and will finalise it. The proposed legislation is expected to be introduced in the upcoming assembly’s August session, given that the indigenous communities proposed to remain outside its ambit.
What is the Draft UCC Bill?
The Draft Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is not the final bill but a proposed legislation seeking to put a single uniform set of personal laws for all citizens. Once it comes into existence, it will replace all the religion-specific rules regarding marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption. Right now, there are two states, namely, Uttarakhand and Gujarat, which have already enacted the UCC laws, while there are other states as well, such as Assam, West Bengal, and Rajasthan, which are currently in different stages of examining or draft the own localised versions of the bill.
Why Has West Bengal Govt Formed 9-Member Panel?
According to the official notification issued by the state government, the committee has been formed to undertake a comprehensive view of the draft before presenting it before the assembly.
“It has been further made to appear to the Governor that considering the wide ramification and voluminous nature of the subject domain, it is necessary to constitute a committee for a comprehensive examination and review of the DRAFT BILL titled The Uniform Civil Code, West Bengal, 2026,” the notification said.
It further stated that the Governor “is pleased hereby to constitute, with immediate effect, a committee comprising the following persons of eminence to examine the bill.”
The proposed bill maintains constitutional protections for specific groups, such as indigenous populations, while replacing religion-specific personal rules in areas like marriage, divorce, inheritance, succession, and adoption with a single legal framework.
BJP Fulfills Its Sankalp
A major commitment made by the BJP in its Sankalp Patra, which promised to bring the law within six months of taking power in the state, was fulfilled earlier this week when Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari publicly announced the initiative to establish a UCC in the state parliament.
Justice Desai currently presides over comparable panels in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh after serving as the chair of the UCC committees in Uttarakhand and Gujarat.
According to officials, the Bengal panel is anticipated to examine current UCC models, especially Assam’s, considering the similarities between the two states’ demographic and migration-related problems.
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