President Droupadi Murmu has given her assent to the Gujarat Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, 2026, making it the second state in independent India after Uttarakhand to codify a common set of personal laws.
The state government will notify the rules for the code, after which the law will come into force.
The legislation, passed after an eight-hour debate on March 24, exempts the state’s Scheduled Tribe (ST) population. Chief minister Bhupendra Patel tabled it a week after a panel headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai submitted its report. Justice Desai had previously headed the committee that drafted the Uttarakhand code.
Moving the Bill, Patel had said, “This Bill has been introduced for the sisters and daughters of Gujarat. The state has taken a step towards accelerating the pace of a developed India by 2047 through the UCC. This Bill ensures that no community is discriminated against. It does not take away anyone’s rights or restrict anyone’s freedom.”
He added that the objective was social harmony and national unity, and noted that the Supreme Court had suggested a uniform code to secure women’s rights. “It is our responsibility to safeguard the rights and dignity of daughters. In this Bill, respect for women is there. It is a matter of women’s empowerment,” he told the House.
The Congress staged a walkout. Both Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party had requested that the Bill be referred to a select committee, while Opposition members termed the legislation anti-Muslim and alleged it was being brought for political gain — a charge the government rejected.
The UCC is the third of the three core agendas the ruling BJP has championed since its inception, the other two being the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya and the scrapping of Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
With this, Gujarat has become the second state, after Uttarakhand, to enact a comprehensive UCC — a common set of laws governing marriage, divorce and inheritance. Assam and Madhya Pradesh — both BJP-ruled states — have also passed UCC legislation, but neither has been implemented yet. Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan — also governed by the BJP — have set up drafting committees to introduce a UCC Bill.
Notably, Goa is uniquely governed by the pre-independence Portuguese Civil Code of 1867, though it was not enacted through a modern legislative UCC framework.
Under the legislation, marriage registration is compulsory, typically within 60 days. Failure to comply can attract a fine of up to ₹10,000. Polygamy and bigamy are prohibited. A marriage solemnised through force, coercion or fraud carries an imprisonment term of up to seven years.
Divorce requires court approval and registration. An out-of-court or customary divorce is invalid and may carry up to three years in jail. Triple talaq and nikah halala are barred. Women may remarry without additional conditions. Sons and daughters receive equal property rights. Couples in a live-in relationship must register their partnership and inform the authorities when it ends. A child born out of such a relationship is treated as legitimate and has a legal claim on the father’s property. A woman deserted by a live-in partner can petition for maintenance.
