Muslim League to fight Union government’s move to implement UCC legally and politically

“The prime minister’s statement yesterday is an extremely mysterious one. It has created confusion among the people of the country. His stance is in violation of the Constitution,” IUML state president Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal told a news conference in Malappuram.

Besides Thangal, IUML leaders PK Kunhalikkutty and ET Muhammed Basheer, too, attended the conference.

Related: PM Modi invokes UCC ahead of polls in heartland states

UCC is unconstitutional: IUML

The IUML said it would protest Modi’s statement. The move to bring in legislation could have a larger impact on the nation. Thangal appealed to the Union government to drop its move to implement the UCC.

“Everyone has understood that the prime minister is setting an agenda ahead of the upcoming elections. Since the government doesn’t have anything to say about its achievements, it has chosen this (UCC) as an election agenda,” Thangal further said.

“This is similar to what they (the BJP) have done in Karnataka. The prime minister has not uttered a single word about the Manipur situation, but he has suddenly taken up a non-issue like the UCC,” he added.

Also Read: BJP will abolish Muslim quota if it gets power in Telangana: Shah

Meanwhile, senior IUML leader and the MP representing the Ponnani parliament constituency, ET Muhammed Basheer, said that UCC is not practical in a diverse nation like India.

“India is a land of diversity. Different communities have their rituals, and laws based on religious texts and other beliefs. In the Indian scenario, what the prime minister has said is impractical,” he said.

He added that Modi’s track record has not been up to the mark. He accused the prime minister and the Union government of destroying the religious harmony in the country.

Related: Owaisi slams Modi over comments on Uniform Civil Code

Modi’s UCC push

Ahead of Assembly elections in key states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh — that are part of regions deemed as the Hindu-Hindi heartland — Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday,  invoked the need for a UCC.

“The BJP has decided it will not adopt the path of appeasement and vote bank politics,” said Modi, while invoking the UCC.

“Even the Supreme Court has advocated for the UCC, but those practising vote-bank politics are opposing it,” claimed Modi while addressing BJP workers selected from across the country for boosting the BJP’s “Mera Booth Sabse Majboot” campaign.

“The Indian Constitution also talks about uniform rights for the people of the country. The BJP follows the path of santushtikaran (satisfaction) instead of tushtikaran (appeasement),” he added.

Also Read: ‘PM talks of reaching out to Muslims, Shah of removing quota’ 

Opposition response to Modi

Modi’s pitch for the UCC also drew sharp criticism from other Opposition parties, with the Congress deeming it an attempt to distract people from real issues.

“He (Modi) should first answer on poverty, price rise, and unemployment in the country. He never speaks about Manipur. The whole state is burning. He is just distracting people from all these issues,” said a statement from Congress general secretary KC Venugopal.

Earlier, senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, too, criticised Modi’s statement, terming it a deliberate attempt to divide society on communal lines.

The Congress’s ally DMK went a step further, asking for the UCC to apply to Hindus first.

Senior DMK leader TKS Elangovan on Tuesday said the UCC should apply to Hindus first, allowing everyone — including Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities — to perform pujas in temples across the country.

“We don’t want the UCC only because the Constitution has given protection to every religion,” Elangovan told reporters.