AIMPLB moves Supreme Court against plea for uniform divorce laws; claims matters of personal law cannot be tested on the anvil of Articles 14, 21

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) has approached the Supreme Court opposing the petition seeking uniform grounds for divorce in the country regardless of faith, personal laws, caste, creed, etc..The Muslim rights body has argued that personal laws cannot be tested on the anvil of Articles 14, 15. 21 and 44 of the Constitution and has sought impleadment in the petition filed by BJP spokesperson and advocate, Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay seeking uniform grounds for divorce. The impleadment application filed by Advocate MR Shamshad states that “custom and usage” in Article 13 of the Constitution does not include faith of a religious denomination embedded in personal laws..[BREAKING] "Can we encroach on personal laws?" Supreme Court seeks Centre's response in plea for uniform grounds of divorce, maintenance, alimony.“The constituent Assembly was aware of the distinction between personal law and the custom and usage and chose advisedly to exclude personaL laws and include custom and usage in Article 13 of the Constitution. If Personal Laws stand excluded from the definition of laws in force in Article 13 then all matters of faith having a direct relationship to religious denomination being matters of personal law cannot be tested on the anvil of Article 14, 15. 21 and 44 of the Constitution,” reads the plea..AIMPLB has further submitted that laws relating to marriage and divorce amongst the Hindus themselves are not uniform and the customs and practices have been protected by the Hindu Marriage Act itself by adding Section 29(2) in the Act..Indians need uniform grounds for Divorce, or none at all.Chief Justice of India SA Bobde led bench had, in December 2020, set the ball rolling on the contentious debate over uniform grounds for divorce and maintenance/alimony across the country. The bench had issued notice to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Law and Justice, and Ministry of Women and Child Development on two separate petitions filed by a lawyer and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay..The petitions highlighted Article 44 of Constitution which is a directive principle urging enforcement of a Uniform Civil Code for all citizens. But the main thrust of the petitions was on discriminatory practices existing within the realm of personal laws that allegedly violate Article 14, which offers the right to equality, Article 21, which promises the right to dignity. Such practices place women at an inferior position to men, the petitioner submitted. .The petitions prayed that regardless of religion or gender, grounds for divorce and maintenance for men and women should be the same..AIMPLB in its impleadment application has stated that the prayers by Upadhyay in the plea “are drafted in such a way to suggest that the Legislature is subordinate to the Union Judiciary rather than being equal pillars of the sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic Republic of India.”.“Thus the doctrine of separation of powers has been held to be a part of the basic structure of the Constitution. For the sake of justice and to ensure that the pristine nature of the extraordinary jurisdiction that this court has been constitutionally granted must not let to be tarnished by entertaining the present petition and that the principles of State of Uttarakhand vs Balwant Singh Chaufal must be followed,” reads the plea.

AIMPLB moves Supreme Court against plea for uniform divorce laws; claims matters of personal law cannot be tested on the anvil of Articles 14, 21

Debayan Roy

Related Stories