Uttarakhand UCC Bill Proposes Mandatory Registration For Live-In Couples, Parental Nod For Those Under 21

Uttarakhand's Uniform Civil Code bill has taken a stringent view of the trend of the live-in relationship especially in the wake of rising crime related to the modern relationship trend. Recently, a few murder cases involving live-in couples shocked the nation and the most brutal among them was the Aftab Poonawala-Shraddha case. The Uttarakhand UCC bill, once turned into an Act, will make it mandatory for individuals living into or intending to enter live-in relationships to register with district authorities within one month. The law will also make parental consent mandatory for those below 21 years of age who seek to cohabit. The compulsory registration applies not only to residents within Uttarakhand but also to individuals in live-in relationships outside the state.

As per the law, registration of live-in relationships will not be permitted in cases deemed against public policy and morality. It will also not be allowed if one partner is already married or involved in another relationship, if one partner is a minor, or if consent was obtained through coercion, fraud, or misrepresentation of identity. The identity misrepresentation bit has been probably picked from the so-called 'love-jihad' trend where a boy from another religion poses as belonging to the girl's religion to get into a relationship. 

Failure to submit declarations for live-in relationships or providing false information may result in a penalty of three months imprisonment, a fine of Rs 25,000, or both. Those who neglect to register a live-in relationship could face a maximum of six months in jail, a fine of Rs 25,000, or both. Even a delayed registration, by as little as a month, could lead to a prison term of up to three months, a fine of Rs 10,000, or both.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami today tabled the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill in the Uttarakhand Assembly. The Bill contains the laws relating to marriage, divorce, succession, live-in relationships, and related matters. The Bill also imposes a complete ban on child marriage and introduces a uniform process for divorce. The Code provides equal rights to women of all religions in their ancestral property.