Omar Abdullah: Bring UCC to Parliament, Not Through States
Omar Abdullah says the BJP should table the Uniform Civil Code in Parliament rather than route it through states, citing ally resistance.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday urged the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to introduce the Uniform Civil Code through Parliament rather than pursuing it state by state, arguing that a measure of such scope should be decided nationally.
Speaking to reporters outside his residence, Abdullah said the subject falls squarely within Parliament's remit and questioned why it was being advanced through individual states. He pointed to divisions within the ruling alliance, noting that the Janata Dal United has indicated the code will not be implemented in Bihar.
"If they have the numbers, they should bring this through Parliament," he said, adding that when the BJP's own partners are not on the same page, it cannot assume the law will be implemented across the country. He said he does not believe the party will be able to secure passage of such a Bill in the House.
Abdullah argued that a code applied only in BJP-ruled states would not amount to a universal law. He said the whole country is not a BJP-ruled state, and that a matter of this nature should not be settled by individual states but by the country as a whole, as represented in Parliament.
He also observed that other measures, including "one nation, one election" and changes concerning reservation, have not been brought before Parliament, and said the Uniform Civil Code was now being routed through the states in similar fashion.
Turning to foreign policy, Abdullah described the joint statement from the recently concluded BRICS Summit that condemned the 2025 Pahalgam attack as a significant achievement. He noted that several of Pakistan's allies were present at the summit, and said that for Pahalgam to be mentioned at all was in itself a major success for India's diplomacy.
On China's praise for India's foreign policy following a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the summit in New Delhi, Abdullah counselled against seeking external validation. He warned that such endorsements cut both ways, asking what India would do if China were to criticise its foreign policy tomorrow. He said New Delhi should not attach undue importance to foreign assessments, whether positive or negative, since it cannot pick and choose which comments to accept.