Amidst the ongoing debate over the legislation of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country, a survey conducted by News18 shows that 67% of Muslim women approve of common laws pertaining to inheritance, adoption, divorce and marriage.
A total of 8,035 Muslim women were interviewed by a team of 884 News18 reporters across 25 States and Union Territories (UTs) for the purpose of the survey. The participants included women aged above 18 years, ranging from illiterate to postgraduate.
The survey did not explicitly mention UCC but covered 7 key questions pertaining to the legislation. On being asked whether there should be ‘common laws for all’ in civil matters, 5403 women (67.2%) said ‘yes’.
A majority of Muslim women are in support of what experts say could be the major tenets of any #UniformCivilCode, according to the key findings of India’s biggest #UCC survey conducted by the News18 Network. Watch for more@Sriya_Kundu | #India pic.twitter.com/kLbkMEaNdh
— News18 (@CNNnews18) July 11, 2023
“Do you think Muslim men should have the right to marry up to four women?” the survey participants were asked. A whopping 6146 Muslim women (76.5%) said that ‘no’ to the question. News18 reported that the negative answer was strong among graduates and women in the age range of 18-44 years.
About 6615 Muslim women (82.3%) agreed that men and women should have equal rights of succession and inheritance. 73.7% of the respondents also affirmed that divorced couples should have the right to remarry without any restrictions.
“Should adoption be allowed regardless of religion?” the Muslim women were also asked. Interestingly, the acceptance rate fell significantly to 64.9% (5219 participants).
#News18Exclusive | 73.7% of respondents feel that divorced couples should be allowed to remarry without any restriction, according to News18's #MegaUCCPoll
— News18 (@CNNnews18) July 10, 2023
64.9% said yes to adoption being allowed regardless of religion, reveals the mega survey #Exclusive #UniformCivilCode… pic.twitter.com/lvSOnYHjho
About 5572 women (69.3% participants) agreed that those who have reached the age of majority should have the freedom to ‘will away’ their properties.
The participants were also asked, “Do you support 21 years as the legal age of marriage for all men and women?” 6320 Muslim women or 78.7% women supported the idea.
While the respondents were given the freedom to stay anonymous, 90% of the women voluntarily told their names to the News18 reporters.
BJP bats for Uniform Civil Code
On June 27, Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the subject of UCC during his address to party workers in Bhopal.
While stating that political parties are trying to mislead Muslims, he strongly batted for equal rights and Uniform Civil Code enshrined in the Constitution. He also dropped a hint that UCC might be on the cards in the upcoming Parliament session.
PM Modi said, “Today people are being instigated in the name of UCC. How can the country run on two laws? The Constitution also talks of equal rights. Supreme Court has also asked to implement UCC. These (Opposition) people are playing vote bank politics.”
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami also said that the UCC would soon be implemented in the State.
