West Bengal Govt Begins Process to Implement Uniform Civil Code
West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari with state Finance minister Swapan Das Gupta. (Image Adhikari on X)
By AMIT KUMAR
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has announced that his government will bring a Uniform Civil Code Bill, with the draft set to go before the Cabinet on July 2. The proposed law will provide a common civil code while exempting tribal and indigenous communities.
Kolkata, June 29, 2026 — West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday announced that his government will introduce a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill in the state. He said that the draft legislation will be placed before the Cabinet on July 2 for approval before being introduced in the Assembly.
Speaking in the West Bengal Assembly, Adhikari said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is committed to implementing the Uniform Civil Code, as promised in its election manifesto.
“We had committed in the BJP’s Sankalp Patra that we would implement the Uniform Civil Code. We remain committed to that promise, and we will bring this Bill,” Adhikari told the House.
Invoking the ideology of BJP founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the chief minister said the proposed legislation was in line with the party’s long-standing principle of “One Nation, One Constitution, One Flag.”
Adhikari said the proposed legislation would draw from the Uniform Civil Code laws enacted in Uttarakhand and Gujarat. “The laws passed in Uttarakhand and Gujarat have been studied, and we are following those models while preparing West Bengal’s Uniform Civil Code,” he said.
The chief minister clarified that the proposed law would ensure a uniform legal framework across the state regardless of religion, while exempting Scheduled Tribes and indigenous tribal communities from its ambit.
“There will be one law in the state. Laws will not differ on the basis of religion. However, tribal and indigenous communities will remain outside the scope of the proposed legislation,” he said.
To prepare the draft, the state government has constituted a committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge. The panel also includes a retired IAS officer, legal experts, an academic, a social worker, and the Secretary of the Administrative Department as its member secretary.
According to Adhikari, the committee has been tasked with conducting a comprehensive review of personal and family laws, including provisions relating to marriage, divorce, maintenance, succession, adoption, inheritance and live-in relationships, among other issues.
The committee has been given four weeks to submit its report. Adhikari said the government intends to accept the committee’s recommendations in August before formally introducing the Uniform Civil Code Bill in the Assembly.
“We promised the people that the Uniform Civil Code would be implemented in West Bengal. We will fulfil that promise,” the chief minister said.
The announcement marks one of the BJP government’s most significant legal reform initiatives in West Bengal after assuming office and is likely to trigger political debate over personal laws, federal powers and constitutional principles.
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