UCC can't be imposed, Constitution gives people religious freedom: Ambedkar

Parliament cannot impose the Uniform Civil Code UCC on citizens as the Constitution gives a person religious freedom said Dr B R Ambedkars grandson Prakash Ambedkar who is the head of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi VBA on Wednesday reported the PTIIn case the Uttarakhand government implements UCC the choice will be with the people whether they want to live as per the code or as per their religion personal law he claimed He also wondered if the state has the right to implement it in the first place as per the PTIPrakash Ambedkar was addressing a press conference in NagpurAccording to the PTI to a query on the BJPled Centres wish to roll out UCC across the country Prakash Ambedkar said that Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution give a person the freedom to adopt a religious life as long as it doesnt conflict with any fundamental rightsBesides the government cannot impose UCC unless it changes the Constitution completely he saidPeople will now have clarity over whether they want to accept UCC or follow their personal laws he saidPrakash Ambedkar wondered whether the Uttarakhand government has the right to bring in UCC Even if the state implements it people will have the choice of whether to accept it or live as per their religion he saidBesides all this is propaganda and nothing else he saidThe Uttarakhand government on Tuesday tabled in the assembly the Uniform Civil Code bill the first such move in any state after Independence that could be followed by similar legislation in other BJPrun statesThe hill states small tribal community is exempted from the proposed law which also mandates registration of livein relationships Children born of livein relationships will be considered legitimate and deserted women will be entitled to maintenance from their partnersComing just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections the Uniform Civil Code Uttarakhand 2024 bill ticks off an important item on the BJPs ideological agenda a common law on marriage divorce land property and inheritance for all citizens irrespective of their religionPrakash Ambedkar also said that the cotton sector is shrinking and demanded incentives for growers He said VBA has prepared a document concerning the cotton and textile industry and it will be presented to the governmentThe cotton and textile industry brings in more than Rs 1 lakh crore in foreign exchange and nearly 60 lakh people depend on it for livelihood The state and central governments do not give the importance to the sector that it deserves he saidPrakash Ambedkar demanded that the government give the same protection to the cotton sector as the diamond industryHe said VBA has proposed that the government give a bonus of Rs 500 per quintal to cotton farmers Similarly Rs 5 per quintal should be paid to cotton pickers labourers from the Maharashtra governments employment guarantee scheme he saidThe proposal has been shared with the opposition block of Maha Vikas Aghadi MVA he said adding that if the government fails to act on it VBA will implement it if it comes to powerTo a query on VBAs alliance with MVA Ambedkar said a discussion on a common minimum programme will be held first before they proceed with seatsharing talks No discussion on seatsharing has taken place so far he saidwith PTI inputs