india

Updated: Oct 26, 2019 04:56 IST

A plea has been moved in the Delhi high court seeking directions to the Centre to frame a uniform civil code within three months and publish it for discussion and debate.

The PIL by Firoz Bakht Ahmed said that an Indian Civil Code for all citizens throughout the territory of India is essential to promote fraternity, unity and national integration.

Ahmed is the chancellor of the Maulana Azad National Urdu University and grandnephew of freedom fighter and first education minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.

“It should proceed on the assumption that there is no connection between religion and personal laws in a civilized society,” the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by Ahmed, who is also a columnist, educationist and political analyst, said.

The plea also sought directions to the Centre to prepare a model draft of an Indian Civil Code in the spirit of the Constitution of India within three months, taking into consideration the best practices of all religions and sects, civil laws of developed countries and international conventions, in order to secure gender justice, gender equality and dignity of women.

The draft should be placed in the public domain for extensive public debate, discussion and feedback, the petition said.