GUWAHATI: Lone Trinamool Congress MLA in the Assam Assembly, Sherman Ali Ahmed, staged a walkout on Wednesday, opposing certain provisions of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill and alleging that the proposed law has been introduced by the BJP-led NDA with "malicious intention".
Ahmed, participating in a discussion on the UCC Bill, said the government cannot bring in a law which is "violative of the Fundamental Rights".
He, however, welcomed several provisions in the draft legislation, like fixing the minimum marriageable age and regulations on live-in relationships.
The TMC legislator maintained that the clause in the Quran on multiple marriages is "misinterpreted".
"While I was ready to support the UCC, broad-based discussions were needed on certain issues," Ahmed said.
Aiming for a common set of laws on a range of personal matters like marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships irrespective of religion, the Assam government on Monday tabled a Bill on the Uniform Civil Code, seeking to ban polygamy and make registration of live-in relationships compulsory.
The Bill, however, said that it will not be applicable to any person belonging to the Scheduled Tribes residing in Assam.
It proposed several punitive measures, including seven years imprisonment for bigamy or polygamy, and three months in jail for not registering a live-in relationship.
"The government has brought this Bill with malicious intention, and as a mark of protest, I walk out of the House," Ahmed said.
He claimed that provisions of the UCC, like who a person can marry, violated verses of the Quran.
"The Quran and what is written in it are main, and it should not be violated," he asserted.
The TMC legislator claimed that the government cannot bring in a law, "violative of the Fundamental Rights with the excuse of leaning on Directive Principles of State Policy".
"Whatever mandate the government may have got, it cannot overwrite the Constitution," he said.
Ahmed also questioned why tribals were left out of its ambit if the proposed law is to be 'uniform'.
The opposition members in the Assam Assembly on Wednesday termed the Bill on Uniform Civil Code as "BJP's political agenda" and sought wider consultation among all stakeholders before the passage of the proposed legislation.
During a discussion on 'The Uniform Civil Code, Assam, 2026 Bill', which was taken up for passage, the opposition MLAs also said it will hurt the rights of a certain section of society.