Tag: #equality

Is Uniform Civil Code really needed ?

Uniform civil code

Uniform civil code is undoubtedly one of the most debatable topic, which can basically be derived from Indian constitution which mandates to replace personal laws based on the scriptures and customs of each major religious community in India with a common set of rules governing every citizen. Mainly their personal laws like laws of marriage, divorce , adoption , maintenance.

Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is defined in our Constitution under Article 44 of Directive Principles of State Policy. In almost India there is no state to apply these special provisions but In Goa which is the only state which has a common family law and 1954 Special Marriage Act allows any citizen to marry outside the realm of any special religious personal law.

The British Government in 1840 on the basis of Lex Loci report had framed many laws bit personal laws were left out intentionally. This era many reformers were raising voice for the for making laws against the women discrimination like sati etc. so the formation of many laws were done and they refuting themselves would result in the proper dysfunctioning ,which they knew, at the panchayat level .

Then comes the period of 1946 where B.R Ambedkar the chairman of the constitution assembly wants to regulates all these personal laws by uniform civil code but some minority groups and communities like of Muslims protested against it, As a result only one line is added in the Constitution under Article 44 in Part IV of DPSP. The main reason was minority mainly Muslims felt that minorities mainly Muslims felt that their personal laws are violated or abrogated by it.

As the secondary result of these the series of Bills were passed to codify Hindu laws in the form of Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, The Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956 and the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956, are collectively known as Hindu Code Bill (covers Buddhist, Sikhs, Janis as well as different religious denominations of Hindus). On the other hand, Muslim personal laws are still primarily unmodified and traditional in their content and approach. The Shariat law of 1937 governs the personal matters of all Indian Muslims in India. It clearly states that in matters of personal disputes, the State shall not interfere and a religious authority would pass a declaration based on his interpretations of the Quran and the Hadith.

Some merits of UCC are that it applies this would keep us integrated. No one feel discriminated because he or she comes from another religion. Uniform Civil Code will provide women with the right to equality and justice in courts of law- irrespective of their religion in matters pertaining to marriage, divorce, maintenance, custody of children, inheritance rights, adoption, etc. A unified code is imperative, both for the protection of the vulnerable sections in Indian society(women and religious minorities) and for the promotion of national unity and solidarity.

Some of the demerits are that Due to diversity in India it is somewhere tough to come up with a common and uniform set of rules but our Government is trying to come up with common rules. also, In personal matters, interference of state. As the constitution provides for the right to freedom of religion of one’s choice. But with the codification of uniform rules and it compulsion may reduce the scope of the freedom of religion but altogether UCC is tough task but not impossible.

Child Labour-The loitering horror

It’s to remind us all of one of the painful horrors which still lurks in the world, it is observed all over the world (12 June) and is celebrated every year by UN is a sanctioned holiday by ILO (International Labour Organization).

Child labour is a horrific crime, many a times it’s forced upon naïve lives and children take up jobs at an early age so that they can also become a bread winner for their family due to financial woes. It’s a vile practice which still exists today in remote areas and many a times goes unnoticed.

Most of the third world countries have the largest number of child labourers’ eg.-South Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Myanmar and also in many parts of India. It’s a phenomenon which most of us are aware about and many a time we try our best to contribute to eradicating this heinous practice from our world.

Economic factors is just one of the reasons which compels children to work, especially due to inflation, children tend to take up jobs at small hotels or shops where informal labour exists, due to this they can easily work around but are also misused by their superiors.

Due to child labour one’s freedom is curtailed along with the banishment of their own carrier and also they are unable to have access to many opportunities which life has to offer. One is unable to focus on self-growth and ones’ goals in life have to be forgotten. The child is put into a whirlpool of reeling pain and is trapped in the wrong sphere at such a young age and also exposes himself to other horrors.

In most of the third world countries family sizes can be huge and just one bread winner’s income won’t suffice the whole family, hence many children are encouraged by their parents to take up jobs in the informal sector and to earn money so that they can satisfy their basic needs. Many factories used to employ children between the age of eleven to thirteen as workers luckily this practice has almost vanished away due to child labour laws.

Many students in developing countries lose interest in studying it could be family problems, financial woes or lack of interest and take up trifling jobs so that they can start earning, this not only ruins their carrier but also can expose them to adverse snarls of the world at a young age.

One of the biggest reasons of child labour is financial problems, most of the children who commit themselves to working as a child labourer are people belonging to BPL (below poverty line), and one of the only ways to work out things in their life is by working and earning at a young age, it could be the nearest tea stall near your house where you see small boys lending their energy or even the newspaper delivery boy who comes on his worn out bicycle. Most of them even end up working as construction labourers, risking their innocent lives.

One of the other reasons for increase in child labour is improper enforcement of laws and irregular checks by the government. As citizens of this country and as humans of the world we can do our bit by educating ourselves on this trivial topics. To contact legislators if we come in contact and come across child labourers in our neighbourhood. Also to not shriek away from giving your domestic workers their fair share of income so that we can break the cycle of child labour. And to buy from local grocery stores and not bargain with small sellers are just a few of the things we can do to improve this disturbing situation.

Abdhi Upadyay

“Indians Against Racism, Brutality . The biggest Hypocrisy?”

“Living in this 21st centuries, with believing in the disbelief of discrimination or any act which divides humanity and differentiate one human from other. We believe that talent,wisdom, knowledge and sense of responsibility and respect for others is far above any individuals background be it a colour or gender or caste or anything. This all brings out the feeling of togetherness around the globe”.

But there are various scenarios and situation we come across in our day to life which shows a strong reflection of these brutal act of racism and discrimination. The true difference between the earlier times and present scenario is that people come up for their friends or any person against whom such act has been done, which truely is an act of humanity and harmony. The present case of death of African American name “George Floyd” in America has again brought the sense of brotherhood and people are standing for him to gain justice of the brutal killing.

Indians not apart from Americans are also standing for George who lost his life in the police encounter. They are also appealing for justice for this man. This act has drawn the attention of people worldwide and people from different countries have been coming in support to stop racism.

But in case of India, where not only racism but also police brutality has been seen and is still active in today’s scenario. We in general hear , how police has been brutal hitting people, especially those in today scenario of pandemic. Various cases have been observed from number of cities india, that how police men are hitting daily wage worker, those having stalls of vegetables, and many other situations. Death of number of people has also been recorded as an encounter with police.

Also the cases of racism and discrimination based on caste and especially gender has been seen widely around the country. So the point of concern is “Why such kind of Hypocrisy”. Before pointing out anything wrong being conducted in any country, one should watch out what’s going around their own surrounding”. It’s easy to point out wrong things and do protest against these things, but the power and wish to do Right matters the most.

There have been various cases of brutal killing of common man by the police force, but no actions have been observed in such situations. We say it’s bad to discriminate people on the bases of colour, and we only buy those creams and powder to make our skin glow. It’s not about that police is wrong in every scenario, we know they are doing their duty and are concern for the law and order to maintain, but any act of brutality should not be taken easily and strict action must be taken against such acts.

So we have to come out of these hypocrisy and work together to get rid out of these brutal acts of killing of innocent people and discriminating any one on the bases of their caste, religion, gender or colour

“We all are humans and we should respect the fact that, out of all, Humanity is the biggest and the most important factor which will help us all to survive difficult situations be it any pandemic or natural calamities, but all we need to do is spread around peace, harmony and sense of brotherhood as this world is full of difficulties but once we stand against them with hand in hand and stand by each other, we will win over them”.