NEW DELHI: President Droupadi Murmu has given her assent to the Gujarat Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2026, completing the key legal process required for the state to enact the law.The Gujarat assembly had earlier passed the Gujarat Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2026, making the state the second in India after Uttarakhand to pass legislation seeking to implement a Uniform Civil Code. However, the provisions of the bill will not apply to members of Scheduled Tribes (STs).While tabling the bill in the Assembly, chief minister Bhupendra Patel had said that the UCC was among the key reforms that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was determined to implement. “The key aim of introducing the bill is to ensure social harmony and national unity. The Supreme Court has also suggested that UCC will ensure women’s rights are secured,” the CM said.The bill proposes mandatory registration of marriages and divorces, with a fine of up to Rs 10,000 for non-compliance.It also makes registration of all live-in relationships compulsory, while requiring couples to notify authorities when such relationships end. Children born from live-in relationships will be considered legitimate children of the couple, while women deserted by their live-in partners will be entitled to seek maintenance, according to the bill.
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The legislation bans polygamy and provides for up to seven years’ imprisonment for marriages conducted through coercion or force. Divorce through any means other than a court decree will be punishable with up to three years in prison.The bill also allows divorced couples to remarry without conditions and prohibits the practice of `halala’ in certain communities.
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