Assam extends term of expert committee on polygamy

The Assam government on Tuesday extended the term of an expert committee formed to examine the legislative competence of the state legislature to enact a law to end polygamy.

In an official release, the state government said the term of the committee has been extended by a month with effect from July 13 to August 12.

On May 12, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced the formation of a four-member expert committee, headed by Justice (Retd) Rumi Phukan, to examine the legislative competence of the state legislature to enact a law to end polygamy.

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Besides Phukan, the other members of the committee are the state's Advocate General Debajit Saikia, Additional Advocate General Nalin Kohli and senior Advocate Nekibur Zaman.

The committee was given a deadline of 60 days to submit its report. It was tasked to scrutinise the provisions of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Act, 1937 along with Article 25 of the Constitution in relation to the Directive Principles of State Policy for a Uniform Civil Code.

On July 13, Sarma had stated that the Assam government had conveyed to the authorities concerned that it was in support of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and wanted to ban polygamy immediately in the state.

The UCC is a matter which would be decided by Parliament, but the state can also take a call with the assent of the President, he had added.

"We want to take one of its segments, polygamy, and ban it immediately. We are planning to introduce the Bill to ban it in the next Assembly session in September and if we are unable to do so for some reason, we will do it in the January session," Sarma had said.

The opposition parties have slammed the decision of the government as diversionary and communal, especially at a time when suggestions on the UCC are being received by the Law Commission.