Kolkata: The West Bengal government has appointed a high-powered committee, led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, to scrutinise a draft Uniform Civil Code (UCC) prepared for the state, a government notification said on Friday.
The notification said the panel was constituted because of the “wide ramifications and voluminous nature” of the proposed law. It will carry out a detailed review of the draft Bill before the government takes any further action.
According to the state, the draft Bill has been prepared with the aim of establishing a uniform legal regime governing personal civil matters for residents of West Bengal, regardless of religion, faith or community. The proposed legislation is intended to address issues including marriage, divorce, intestate succession and testamentary succession.
Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai (retd) will head the committee, the notification added. Other members named are former Meghalaya Governor Tathagata Roy, Resident Commissioner Dushyant Nariala, retired IAS officer Shatrughna Singh, Principal Secretary of the Home and Hill Affairs Department Sanghamitra Ghosh, academic Dr Ratna Bhattacharya, former vice-chancellor of Gour Banga University Gopalchandra Misra, advocate Osman Gani Mallick and former executive director Nirmalya Bhattacharyya, as reported by The Pioneer.
The panel’s formation follows a decision taken at the State Cabinet meeting on July 2. “It has been set up for a comprehensive examination and review of the draft Bill in view of the wide ramifications and voluminous nature of the subject,” a senior state government official said.
Another senior official said the committee would study the draft document in detail and submit its recommendations to the Government before any decision on the proposed legislation is taken.
The notification underlined that the initiative has been taken keeping in view Article 44 of the Constitution, which directs the State to endeavour to secure a Uniform Civil Code for citizens.
Since 2014, three States — Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Assam — have adopted versions of a UCC, and West Bengal is poised to become the fourth. The state’s draft aims to harmonise civil laws across communities on matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption, and officials said it aligns with key parameters of the Uttarakhand and Assam models.
The UCC was a major promise in the BJP’s campaign for the 2026 Assembly elections. The party won the poll, ending the Trinamool Congress’s 15-year rule in the state.
Speaking to reporters in Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday said that the committee would soon start working and the UCC would soon be implemented in the State.
“The committee has been formed under former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai. It will soon start working, and it will soon be implemented in the State just as it has been in other states. There will be one nation and one law and not two laws,” Adhikari said.
