UCC, LS elections among key Uttarakhand political issues in '24

The passage of Uniform Civil Code, intensification of land law agitations, politics over the Kedarnath Dham temple replica, BJP consolidating its political position with winning all the five parliamentary seats in the state in a row dominated the political landscape in Uttarakhand this year.

- Neeraj Santoshi

DEHRADUN:

Passing of historic UCC law The passage of the UCC and the subsequent developments related to its implementation in the state dominated the politics of the state, with Uttarakhand becoming the first state in the country to bring such a law in the country. State government passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill 2024 on February 7, based on the report submitted by expert committee on UCC, headed by retired judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, to the state government on February 2. The committee on UCC had been formed in 2022. Subsequently state government formed a committee headed by Shatrughan Singh, retired Chief Secretary (chairperson) on February 10 for preparing the draft of the rules for UCC Bill. On February 24, the state government also formed three sub-committees for preparation of the draft of rules for UCC Bill. On March 13, state government stated that President has signed off on the bill. On October 18, UCC legislation Rules Making and Implementation Committee submitted its draft report on UCC rules to chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. On December 18, CM Dhami announced that UCC will be implemented in Uttarakhand from January 2025.