Key facts
- West Bengal BJP government to introduce UCC Bill
- Suvendu Adhikari announces high-powered drafting panel
- Bill expected in August assembly session
- Uttarakhand was the first state to enact a UCC law
West Bengal is set to become one of the first states after Uttarakhand to formally move on a Uniform Civil Code, with the BJP government announcing plans to introduce a UCC Bill in the state assembly. Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari announced the formation of a high-powered panel to prepare the legislation, with the Bill expected to be tabled in the August session of the assembly.
The UCC aims to replace personal laws — which currently govern marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption differently across religious communities — with a single set of civil rules applicable to all citizens regardless of faith. While the BJP has championed the UCC as a national priority, its implementation at the state level in West Bengal would carry exceptional political weight given the state's large Muslim minority and its history of communal sensitivity.
Uttarakhand became the first state to enact a UCC law in 2024, and several other BJP-governed states have expressed intent to follow. West Bengal, where the BJP is in power following the 2021 assembly elections, would be a far more politically complex arena for the legislation — one that is likely to generate intense debate both inside the assembly and across civil society.
Opposition parties and Muslim community organisations are expected to challenge the move vigorously. Legal experts noted that while states can legislate on many personal law matters, the constitutional and political dimensions of a state-level UCC will face significant scrutiny.