RIYADH — Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) in Riyadh completely rejected the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and opposed politicization of the National Law Commission by unanimously opposing government's interference in the Muslim Personal Law Board (MPLB) The Association for Humanitarian Services And Solidarity (AHSAS) organized a public dialogue with members of the Indian community recently to express solidarity with the MPLB and welcomed their move to reject Law Commission's political recommendation to implement the UCC. The program started with the recitation of verses of Holy Qur'an by Kaleem Ahmad followed by welcome address by Neyaz Ahmed, president of AHSAS. On the occasion Ozair Falahi highlighted the Islamic perspective of gender equality and women rights whereas veteran NRI Salim Zubaidi made a comprehensive presentation on historical aspects of personal laws. Rashid Hasan said the UCC is a mere proposal to replace the existing personal laws as the Article 44 says, "the state shall endeavor to secure for citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India," and does not say the state will enact the UCC, therefore the union government must refrain from triggering an unnecessary debate to introduce a controversial common civil doe for all. "The government should understand the implications of imposing the UCC on communities belonging to different culture and region with their customary practices, it will not be practical," he said, adding that since the government intended to saffronize the secular fabric including government institutions, "any such interference with the MPLB is unacceptable and will not be tolerated." Moreover, any such efforts to impose the UCC in the name of social reform and gender justice will prove counterproductive as it has nothing to do with these issues, he said. Tariq Akhtar Nadvi, while explaining the importance, purpose and terms and conditions of marriage in Islam stressed that when selecting the bride and groom the religious and moral aspects must be taken into consideration. "The un-Islamic practices of dowry and other rituals of marriage must be abolished," he said. On the other hand, he briefed about the types of talaqs (divorce), its Islamic perspective and demanded that MPLB should raise awareness among the masses. In his keynote address, prominent NRI Hussain Zulqarnain explained the basic principles of Personal Laws and said there is ‘no compulsion in religion'. "Uniform civil code is not good for India, which has many cultures and religions. It will divide India and will cause disharmony among the society," he said. "Muslims in India are facing multifarious challenges and to deal with them we need to have proactive leadership," he added. The program was successfully conducted by Imtiaz Ahmed Nadvi, former president of AHSAS. The key community leaders who attended included BISWAS general secretary Akhtarul Islam Nadvi, Ghazanfar Ali Khan, Bihar Anjuman's President Munir Ahmed, Tanzeem Hum Hindustani President Mohammed Quaiser and representatives of various community organizations. AHSAS core committee member Rafiul Akhter welcomed the guests while general secretary Wakeel Ahmed proposed the vote of thanks.
