The Chief Minister's Office of Madhya Pradesh announced on Wednesday, 24 June 2026, that more than 90 per cent of citizens who participated in the state's public consultation process expressed support for the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), describing the response as reflecting 'wide support' for the proposed reform. The post, shared from the official handle of the Chief Minister's Office and tagging Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav, stated in Hindi: 'जनपरामर्श प्रक्रिया में 90% से अधिक नागरिकों ने UCC का समर्थन कर इस विषय पर अपनी सकारात्मक राय व्यक्त की' — meaning, 'In the public consultation process, more than 90 per cent of citizens expressed their positive opinion in support of UCC.'

Context

The Uniform Civil Code refers to a proposed common set of laws governing personal matters — including marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption — applicable to all citizens of India regardless of their religion. Currently, different religious communities in India are governed by separate personal laws, such as the Hindu Code Bills, Muslim Personal Law, and others. The idea of a UCC is enshrined in Article 44 of the Constitution of India as a Directive Principle of State Policy, directing the state to 'endeavour to secure' such a code for all citizens. Goa remains the only state in India with an existing uniform civil code, inherited from its Portuguese-era civil legislation after its liberation in 1961.

Policy Backdrop

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has long championed the UCC as a core electoral and governance commitment, reiterating it in its 2019 national election manifesto. Madhya Pradesh, governed by the BJP under Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav — who has headed the state government since December 2023 — launched a structured public consultation exercise to gauge citizen sentiment before any legislative action. The move is consistent with a broader pattern among BJP-governed states, several of which have initiated similar public consultation or legislative processes on the UCC in recent years, reflecting a coordinated approach to fulfilling long-standing party promises rooted in the constitutional directive.

Stakeholders and Impact

The UCC debate touches a wide range of stakeholders across Madhya Pradesh and the country. Women's rights groups have historically been among the strongest advocates for a uniform code, arguing it would equalise protections across communities on issues such as inheritance rights and marriage age. Religious communities, particularly minority groups, have raised concerns about the potential erosion of faith-based personal law traditions. The public consultation process — the specific methodology and scale of which have been reported by the state government — is intended to demonstrate democratic legitimacy for any eventual legislation. The figure of 90 per cent support cited in the post is drawn from the state's own consultation data.

What's Next

The announcement of overwhelming public support is widely seen as a precursor to a formal legislative push. Observers will watch for the introduction of a UCC bill in the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly, which would make the state one of the first to attempt codifying a uniform civil code through state legislation — a move that would likely face legal scrutiny given that personal laws are a concurrent subject under the Indian Constitution. Parallel developments in other BJP-governed states are also expected to shape the national conversation, with the Madhya Pradesh consultation potentially serving as a template for similar exercises elsewhere.