10 hrs ago
Maharashtra UCC Panel Adds Adviser After Justice Chavan Resigns
Maharashtra has a committee working on a possible Uniform Civil Code, or UCC.
A UCC would be a common set of personal laws for people in the state.
Retired judge Justice R C Chavan left the committee after a meeting on September 19.
He questioned why retired IAS officer Shatrughna Singh took part when Singh was not yet officially a member.
Singh had been invited as an adviser by committee chairperson Justice Ranjana Desai.
Two days later, the Maharashtra government officially made Singh a member-cum-senior adviser.
The committee also discussed a questionnaire and website for collecting public opinions.
The questionnaire is expected to have nearly three dozen questions.
The committee has six months to prepare its recommendations.
Retired judge Justice R C Chavan resigned from Maharashtra’s UCC committee after a September 19 meeting.
Retired IAS officer Shatrughna Singh attended that meeting as an adviser despite not then being a committee member.
The Maharashtra government appointed Singh as a member-cum-senior adviser on September 21.
The meeting discussed a public questionnaire and proposed changes to the website for UCC consultations.
The committee plans to seek public feedback and submit its report within six months.
- Who
- Justice R C Chavan, Shatrughna Singh, Justice Ranjana Desai, and the Maharashtra UCC committee.
- What
- Singh was appointed a member-cum-senior adviser two days after Chavan resigned over Singh’s participation in a committee meeting.
- Where
- Maharashtra, during the work of the state’s Uniform Civil Code committee.
- When
- Singh attended the meeting on September 19, and the government appointed him on September 21.
- Why
- Singh was invited to provide advice on the public-consultation website and questionnaire, while Chavan questioned the role of a non-member at the meeting.
Procedural concern
Advisory participation
Presence at the September 19 meeting
Procedural concern
Justice R C Chavan questioned the role of a person who was not part of the committee and said he had not been informed of Singh’s appointment.
Advisory participation
Singh was invited by Justice Ranjana Desai as an adviser to provide inputs during the meeting.
Website and questionnaire changes
Procedural concern
Chavan’s account said Singh pointed out that the website prepared by state officials needed modifications, after which the chairperson directed authorities to make changes.
Advisory participation
Sources said Singh raised concerns about the website’s introductory explanation of the UCC and how the questionnaire would be made available for public consultation.
Key facts
- Committee chairperson
- Retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Desai
- Chavan’s resignation
- Submitted after the committee’s September 19 meeting
- Singh’s appointment
- Appointed member-cum-senior adviser on September 21
- Public questionnaire
- Expected to contain close to three dozen questions
- Committee deadline
- Six months to submit its report
- Proposed legislation
- Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has said the government aims to introduce a UCC Bill during the December Winter Session
- Singh’s prior UCC work
- He worked with Justice Desai on Uttarakhand’s UCC and later headed its rules-framing committee
Quotes
Justice R C Chavan
Retired Bombay High Court judge and former member of Maharashtra’s Uniform Civil Code committee
“On the day of the meeting or in the emails sent before, no intimation was given regarding Singh’s appointment as adviser.”
indianexpress.com
Sources
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