Uniform Civil Code vs Hindu Personal Law: Constitutional Challenges, Gender Justice, and Future Prospects in India

Abstract

The proposal for a Uniform Civil Code under Article 44 of the Constitution of India has remained one of the most debated and sensitive issues in Indian constitutional law. While the Constitution envisages a common civil law applicable to all citizens, religious personal laws continue to regulate marriage, divorce, succession, maintenance, and guardianship. Hindu personal law, unlike other personal law systems, has undergone extensive statutory reform since independence, raising questions about whether internal reform offers a more viable alternative to uniform codification. This paper critically examines the constitutional tensions between the Uniform Civil Code and Hindu personal law, with particular emphasis on equality, secularism, gender justice, and religious freedom. Adopting a mixed doctrinal and empirical methodology, the study analyses constitutional provisions, statutory developments, landmark judicial decisions, and empirical data collected through a legal consciousness scale. The paper argues that incremental, rights-based reform rooted in constitutional morality provides a more sustainable and socially legitimate pathway for personal law reform in India than the immediate imposition of a uniform code.