Citing the plural character of the India Constitution, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), after a marathon meeting here on Wednesday, decided to oppose the uniform civil code.

The significant meeting lasted for over three hours, during which an extensive discussion on the UCC took place.

“Indian Constitution, the most crucial document of the country, itself is not uniform in nature, prudently with the intention to keep the country united. Different treatment, accommodation, adjustment is the nature of our Constitution. Different territories of the country have been given different treatment and different communities are entitled to different rights and different religions have been given different accommodations,” said SQR Ilyasi, spokesman of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board.

Claiming that the Muslim personal law was an inalienable part of Muslim identity and Muslims would never lose their identity, Ilyasi said, “Quran is the fundamental religious book of the Muslims and fiqh (Islamic law) are protected by Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution and Quran mandates the believers to follow the injunctions of the holy book',’

He added, “The followers of Islam are bound by the injunctions of the Quran and the same are non-negotiable. Personal relationship of Muslims guided by their personal laws is directly derived from the Quran and Sunnah and this aspect is linked to the identity of the Muslims.”

“National integrity, safety and security and fraternity is best preserved and maintained if we maintain the diversity of our country by permitting minorities and tribal communities to be governed by their own personal laws',” Ilyasi said.

AIMPLB member Maulan Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali said the All India Muslim Personal Law Board was founded on Shariah principles and as a result, no Muslim would tolerate any modifications to it. He said two drafts on UCC would be handed over to the Law Commission, one from the AIMPLB and the other from Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind. The latter, which is led by its president Arshad Madani, will consult with the lawyers prior to handing over its response.

The AIMPLB had earlier charged that the Bharatiya Janata Party wanted to use uniform civil code as an issue in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and as far as UCC was concerned, neither it was required nor it was useful for the country.

The AIMPLB also dragged the tribal groups into their argument and claimed the latter’s unique privileges would also get terminated as a result of the UCC.

Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan, president of Ittehad-e-Millat Council representing the Barelvi Sunni sect of Muslims, also voiced his discontent against the idea of UCC. He said the government should not test the patience of Muslims.

Notably, the UCC calls for the formulation of one civil law for India, which would be applicable to all religious communities in matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption. It has been an essential part of the election manifesto of the Bharatiya Janata Party government over the past many years.