In a groundbreaking move, the Indian state of Uttarakhand has banned polygamy while introducing equal inheritance rights for men and women, local media reported.
According to analysts, these changes—part of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC)—to personal status laws affect religious communities, including India’s over 200 million Muslims, who have traditionally followed their own religious customs.
Muslim groups have opposed the laws, calling them an attack on religious freedoms by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government, emphasizing the fact that they will challenge the move in different courts
Reports suggest that the Modi government deliberately chose Uttarakhand for this legal shift, as its Muslim population is relatively small and dispersed across mountainous areas.
State Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, a member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), hopes the changes will serve as a model for other BJP-ruled states, aligning with the party’s long-standing ideological agenda.
Supporters argue that the reforms grant Muslim women equal rights, ending polygamy and ensuring daughters inherit property on par with sons. The new laws also mandate that divorces be finalized in civil courts and require couples in heterosexual relationships to register their union or face up to three months in jail or a fine.
