The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) has once again moved to the centre of public debate — driven by the Supreme Court (SC) rather than the government, even though Article 44 places it within the domain of policy. In the latest petition, the Court was asked to strike down the Muslim Shariat (Application) Act, 1937, which permits the application of Muslim Personal Law (MPL) in matters of succession and inheritance. A three-judge bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, made pertinent observations while advocating a UCC to remove discriminatory provisions in MPL. The Chief Justice observed that “in our over-anxiety for reforms, we may end up depriving them, and they might end up getting less than what they are already getting”.

The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has now challenged the newly enacted Gujarat UCC on the changes it has made to inheritance law. Merely providing equal shares in succession law to sons and daughters does not ensure equality in inheritance if the same law grants absolute testamentary powers — allowing a person to will away their entire property to anyone he chooses. Neither the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, nor the Indian Succession Act, 1925, nor even the Uttarakhand UCC, 2024, imposes restrictions on such........

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