{"id":1295,"date":"2009-11-23T09:53:45","date_gmt":"2009-11-23T16:53:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/?p=1291"},"modified":"2009-11-23T09:53:45","modified_gmt":"2009-11-23T16:53:45","slug":"why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/","title":{"rendered":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post isn’t going to make me very popular with the progressive Indian crowd. I don’t blame them. A Uniform Civil Code<\/strong> (UCC) for India will mean that there will be only one civil law for all religions and for all people. As of now for example, Muslims have a separate marriage law and Christians have a separate inheritance law. The Indian Constitution states that the government should try and ensure that over time, there is just one law for everyone. Mind we’re not talking about Criminal law which is the same for everyone. Just Civil law.<\/p>\n

I used to be a big believer in a Uniform Civil code for India too, until I began to see things differently and began to understand why India has survived as a Democracy<\/a> for so long against all odds. I’ve come to realize that people don’t like their identities to be subsumed by a larger identity – especially when they feel threatened.<\/p>\n

Image Credit: Adam Foster | Codefor<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"India's<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/em>
India's diversity is its strength<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

All over the world we see people struggling to maintain their identity – to differentiate themselves from a larger identity that they feel threatens their own. The Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, the Uighurs (or Uyghurs) in China, the Tibetan population, and too many others to list here<\/a>. These movements are worldwide. Even countries with uniform and homogeneous cultures have separatist movements. The French for example, fiercely protect their language and identity and the Danish people will pay immigrants to leave<\/a> if they can’t integrate culturally.<\/p>\n

Given all these movements, it’s nothing short of a miracle that India which has 1,576 languages (according to the 1991 census), and a dizzying multitude of races has managed to survive so long without being split apart several times over. The main reason for this is the fact that India doesn’t try and integrate everything by force. It just lets things be. Force begets force.<\/p>\n

India doesn’t believe in coercion. It accepts everything and everyone. It doesn’t try and control. Many people claim that India’s weakness is that it doesn’t take anything too seriously. They are wrong. It isn’t weakness. It’s strength.<\/p>\n

I can’t help but quote from the Tao Teh Ching<\/em> here – it’s so apt that it might have been written for India:<\/p>\n


\nWhen government is lazy and blunt
\nThe people are kind and honest;
\nWhen government is efficient and severe
\nThe people are discontented and deceitful.<\/em><\/p>\n

and<\/p>\n

Those who lead people by following the Tao
\ndon’t use weapons to enforce their will.
\nUsing force always leads to unseen troubles.<\/em><\/p>\n

and finally
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Why are the people rebellious?
\nBecause the rulers interfere too much.
\nTherefore they are rebellious.<\/em><\/p>\n

As things stand right now in India, most people don’t feel threatened by a government that is chill with everything. No one takes anything too seriously. There are fights and battles, but the disturbance they cause is relatively small. As of now, I feel that the imposition of a Uniform Civil Code by force will make people feel threatened.<\/p>\n

It goes against the grain of India to make things uniform. India is a mass of contradictions. Each state is like a separate country – a bit like the European Union rather than the US, with each having its own culture, and language. Even the Chief Justice of India has commented on how the Uniform Civil Code is a sensitive issue<\/a>.<\/p>\n

India has found stability because<\/em> of its contradictions. Instead of trying to resolve contradictions, we let them thrive side by side. Destroying those contradictions and bringing everything in line with logic, may be a pretty ideal, but it will be the end of India as we know it.<\/p>\n

What’s your take?<\/p>\n

[poll id=”12″]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn’t right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1295","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nWhy India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Expressions - Bhagwad Jal Park\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"bhagwad\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@bhagwad\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@bhagwad\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"bhagwad\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"bhagwad\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23\"},\"headline\":\"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code\",\"datePublished\":\"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":653,\"commentCount\":9,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2009\\\/11\\\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Politics\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/\",\"name\":\"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2009\\\/11\\\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00\",\"description\":\"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2009\\\/11\\\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2009\\\/11\\\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg\",\"width\":\"500\",\"height\":\"333\",\"caption\":\"India's diversity is its strength\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/2009\\\/politics\\\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Expressions - Bhagwad Jal Park\",\"description\":\"My thoughts, haikus and freelance musings\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23\",\"name\":\"bhagwad\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/litespeed\\\/avatar\\\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/litespeed\\\/avatar\\\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/litespeed\\\/avatar\\\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596\",\"caption\":\"bhagwad\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/litespeed\\\/avatar\\\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.bhagwad.com\\\/blog\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code","description":"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code","og_description":"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it","og_url":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/","og_site_name":"Expressions - Bhagwad Jal Park","article_published_time":"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"bhagwad","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@bhagwad","twitter_site":"@bhagwad","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"bhagwad","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/"},"author":{"name":"bhagwad","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23"},"headline":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code","datePublished":"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/"},"wordCount":653,"commentCount":9,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg","articleSection":["Politics"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/","name":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg","datePublished":"2009-11-23T16:53:45+00:00","description":"Explains why a Uniform Civil Code isn't right for India. India has survived for so long as a Democracy only because it allows opposites to thrive side by side. Excessive control will destroy it","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Indias-diversity-is-its-strength.jpg","width":"500","height":"333","caption":"India's diversity is its strength"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/2009\/politics\/why-india-isnt-ready-for-a-uniform-civil-code.html\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Why India isn't ready for a Uniform Civil Code"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/","name":"Expressions - Bhagwad Jal Park","description":"My thoughts, haikus and freelance musings","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06c9c710885b810f1dfe3779fc346b23","name":"bhagwad","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596","url":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596","caption":"bhagwad"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-content\/litespeed\/avatar\/7940f38fc479ebe739ec963b542bf098.jpg?ver=1776270596"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1295","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1295"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1295\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1295"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1295"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bhagwad.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1295"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}