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By:

Akhilesh Sinha

25 June 2025 at 2:53:54 pm

Cultural identity begins once again

AI generated image New Delhi: The Assam government's decision to introduce the UCC Bill in the state assembly on Monday marks a significant shift in the political landscape. After Uttarakhand and Gujarat, Assam has become the third BJP-ruled state to move decisively toward giving legal shape to the Uniform Civil Code. Indications also suggest that the issue may soon emerge at the center of political discourse in West Bengal. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Atul Bora introduced the "Assam...

Cultural identity begins once again

AI generated image New Delhi: The Assam government's decision to introduce the UCC Bill in the state assembly on Monday marks a significant shift in the political landscape. After Uttarakhand and Gujarat, Assam has become the third BJP-ruled state to move decisively toward giving legal shape to the Uniform Civil Code. Indications also suggest that the issue may soon emerge at the center of political discourse in West Bengal. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Atul Bora introduced the "Assam Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2026" in the Assembly. The proposed legislation extends far beyond issues of marriage and divorce, touching several sensitive aspects of the social structure. According to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the law seeks to regulate five major areas, a ban on polygamy, a uniform minimum age for marriage, compulsory registration of marriages and divorces, equal inheritance rights for daughters in ancestral property, and mandatory registration of live-in relationships. The government argues that the legislation is aimed at providing legal protection to women and eliminating entrenched social evils. The most striking aspect of the Assam model, however, is its "exception clause." Scheduled Tribes have been kept outside the ambit of the proposed law, whether they reside in the hills or the plains. Traditional religious customs and rituals have also been exempted. This reflects the government's attempt to balance the message of equality with the ethnic and cultural sensitivities of the Northeast. Indeed, this remains one of the core challenges of Indian federalism that maintaining harmony between uniformity and diversity. The opposition has sharply criticised the Bill both inside and outside the Assembly from the very beginning of the session. While the ruling party claims that introducing the UCC fulfills one of its key electoral promises, opposition parties such as the Congress, Trinamool Congress, and Raijor Dal have questioned both the timing of the legislation and its potential social consequences. Assam Congress working president Zakir Hussain Sikdar described the move as the BJP's "political agenda" and asked what tangible benefit it would bring to ordinary citizens. The opposition has also alleged that there was no broad-based social or political consultation before introducing the Bill. Roots of Idea Yet, the idea of a Uniform Civil Code is far from new. Article 44 of the Directive Principles of State Policy in the Indian Constitution directs the State to endeavour to secure a common civil code for all citizens. The roots of this idea can be traced back to the colonial era. In 1835, the British government proposed the concept of a uniform law, though personal religious laws were kept outside its scope. Goa, through the Portuguese Civil Code, has long had a form of common civil law in place. However, in independent India, Uttarakhand became the first state to take a concrete step in this direction. The UCC Bill was introduced in the Uttarakhand Assembly in February 2024 and implemented in January 2025 after receiving presidential assent. The Uttarakhand model granted equal property rights to sons and daughters and made registration of live-in relationships mandatory, while exempting Scheduled Tribes. Gujarat, too, passed a UCC Bill this year, with a particular emphasis on inheritance laws. Under the proposed framework, if a person dies intestate, parents, children, and spouses would receive equal shares in the property. Highlighted Need The judiciary, too, has repeatedly underscored the need for a Uniform Civil Code. In the landmark Shah Bano case, the Supreme Court observed that Article 44 had remained "a dead letter" and stated that a common civil code could strengthen national integration. In the Sarla Mudgal judgment as well, the Court expressed disappointment over the failure to implement the UCC. Again in 2015, the Supreme Court reiterated the need to uphold the spirit of Article 44 by moving toward a common civil framework for the entire country. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was among the strongest advocates of a Uniform Civil Code. During the Constituent Assembly debates, he argued that such a law would apply equally to people of all religions and would have nothing to do with religious practices themselves. He believed that ensuring equality in matters of family, marriage, inheritance, and civil rights was the duty of the State, so that individual rights would not be compromised in the name of community traditions.

Tycoon who revamped an Indian conglomerate to a global might

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Tycoon

From working on the shop floor of Tata Steel in 1961 after graduating in architecture to becoming its chairman and later on the group chairman, the doyen of Indian industry -- Ratan Tata during his tenure grew the India-centric conglomerate – Tata Group into a global force to reckon with.


Before he joined the helm of affairs at the Tata group, its revenue was by and large coming from commodities, but he had the foresight to grow the group inorganically by acquiring global brands with Tata Tea, Tata Motors and Tata Steel acquiring Tetley, Jaguar Land Rover and Corus, respectively.


All of his inorganic initiatives bore fruit as close to 50 percent of Tata group’s revenue of USD 165 billion now come from global operations.


During his tenure as the group chairman from 1991-2012, the group exited ACC – the cement commodity business despite being profitable to pursue global acquisition while listing TCS in 2004 that fueled growth and derived dividends for the group’s philanthropic initiatives.


In 2008, he fulfilled his promise to offer the world’s cheapest car – Tata Nano at a price tag of Rs 1 lakh, affordable to the Indian middle class and a mark of innovation.


His vision about acquiring companies not only brought about his financial acumen with respect to large global brands and conglomerates, but also about investing in start-ups including Snapdeal, Paytm, Ola, Cardekho, FirstCry, Lenskart, Nestaway, Urban Ladder, Urban Company, Generic Aadhaar among several others.


Born in Mumbai in December 1937 and completing his primary schooling within the city, Ratan Tata was adopted into the Tata family.  He later enrolled in Cornell University from which he graduated with a degree in architecture in 1959.


“….he was a businessman for whom financial wealth and success was most useful when it was put to the service of the global community,” said industrialist Anand Mahindra in his tweet.


As a staunch supporter of education, healthcare and rural development, Ratan Tata – the philanthropist supported University of New South Wales faculty of engineering to develop capacitive deionization in order to provide quality water for challenging areas.


He funded several initiatives for genetics, biological and physical sciences to foster collaboration and innovation among researchers to address infectious diseases including gene editing stem cell therapy and the need for sustainable food sources.


Post retirement, he led a very modest life living in Colaba in South Mumbai with his two dogs – Tito (German Shepherd) and Tango (Golden Retriever) but continued to leave a lasting legacy as a corporate and philanthropic citizen.


In the year 2000, Ratan Tata was recognized with third highest civilian honour – Padma Bhushan and with second highest civilian honour Padma Vibhushan in 2008 as also with state civilian honour like Maharashtra Bhushan.


As renowned industrialist Harsh Goenka aptly puts it, “……a beacon of integrity, ethical leadership and philanthropy, who has imprinted an indelible mark on the world of business and beyond.”

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