Law Commission of India invites views of general public, recognised religious organisations to examine Uniform Civil Code. Commission has given 30 days' time for presentation of views; to review the issue afresh thereafter.

What is a Uniform Civil Code?

Ø  A Uniform Civil Code is one that would provide for one law for the entire country, applicable to all religious communities in their personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption etc. Article 44 of the Constitution lays down that the state shall endeavour to secure a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.

Ø  Article 44 is one of the Directive Principles of State Policy. These, as defined in Article 37, are not justiciable (not enforceable by any court) but the principles laid down therein are fundamental in governance.

Ø  Fundamental Rights are enforceable in a court of law. While Article 44 uses the words state shall endeavour”, other Articles in the "Directive Principles chapter use words such as in particular strive”; !shall in particular direct its policy”; !shall be obligation of the state” etc.

Ø  Article 43 mentions !state shall endeavour by suitable legislation”, while the phrase by suitable legislation” is absent in Article 44. All this implies that the duty of the state is greater in other directive principles than in Article 44.

What are more important — Fundamental Rights or Directive Principles?

Ø  There is no doubt that Fundamental Rights are more important. The Supreme Court held in Minerva Mills (1980): !Indian Constitution is founded on the bed-rock of the balance between Parts III (Fundamental Rights) and IV (Directive Principles). To give absolute primacy to one over the other is to disturb the harmony of the Constitution”.

Ø  Article 31C inserted by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, however, lays down that if a law is made to implement any Directive Principle, it cannot be challenged on the ground of being violative of the Fundamental Rights under Articles 14 and 19.

Does India not already have a uniform code in civil matters?

Ø  Indian laws do follow a uniform code in most civil matters — Indian Contract Act, Civil Procedure Code, Sale of Goods Act, Transfer of Property Act, Partnership Act, Evidence Act, etc. States, however, have made hundreds of amendments and, therefore, in certain matters, there is diversity even under these secular civil laws. Recently, several states refused to be governed by the uniform Motor Vehicles Act, 2019.

Ø  If the framers of the Constitution had intended to have a Uniform Civil Code, they would have given exclusive jurisdiction to Parliament in respect of personal laws, by including this subject in the Union List. But personal laws” are mentioned in the Concurrent List. Last year, the Law Commission concluded that a Uniform Civil Code is neither feasible nor desirable.

Is there one common personal law for any religious community governing all its members?

Ø  All Hindus of the country are not governed by one law, nor are all Muslims or all Christians. Not only British legal traditions, even those of the Portuguese and the French remain operative in some parts.

Ø  In Jammu and Kashmir until August 5, 2019, local Hindu law statutes differed from central enactments. The Shariat Act of 1937 was extended to J&K a few years ago but has now been repealed. Muslims of Kashmir were thus governed by a customary law, which in many ways was at variance with Muslim Personal Law in the rest of the country and was, in fact, closer to Hindu law.

Ø  Even on registration of marriage among Muslims, laws differ from place to place. It was compulsory in J&K (1981 Act), and is optional in West Bengal, Bihar (both under 1876 Act), Assam (1935 Act) and Odisha (1949 Act).

Ø  In the Northeast, there are more than 200 tribes with their own varied customary laws. The Constitution itself protects local customs in Nagaland. Similar protections are enjoyed by Meghalaya and Mizoram. Even reformed Hindu law, in spite of codification, protects customary practices.

How does the idea of a Uniform Civil Code relate to the fundamental right to religion?

Ø  Article 25 lays down an individuals fundamental right to religion; Article 26(b) upholds the right of each religious denomination or any section thereof to !manage its own affairs in matters of religion”; Article 29 defines the right to conserve distinctive culture.

Ø  An individuals freedom of religion under Article 25 is subject to !public order, health, morality” and other provisions relating to fundamental rights, but a groups freedom under Article 26 has not been subjected to other fundamental rights.

Ø  In the Constituent Assembly, there was division on the issue of putting Uniform Civil Code in the fundamental rights chapter. The matter was settled by a vote. By a 5:4 majority, the fundamental rights sub-committee headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel held that the provision was outside the scope of Fundamental Rights and therefore the Uniform Civil Code was made less important than freedom of religion.

About the Law Commission -

Ø  The Law Commission of India is a non-statutory body constituted by the Government of India from time to time.

Ø  It functions to the Ministry of Law and Justice as an advisory body.

History —

Ø  The first Law Commission was established during the British Raj era in 1834 by the Charter Act of 1833 and was chaired by Lord Macaulay.

Ø  In 1955, the first independent Law Commission was created.

Ø  Objective — To carry out research in the field of law and makes recommendations to the Government (in the form of Reports) as per its terms of reference.

Ø  The commission's recommendations are not binding on the Government.

Ø  The Law Commission has so far submitted 277 Reports.

Ø  The commission consists of legal experts and is headed by a retired judge.

Ø  The Commission is constituted for a fixed tenure.

The annual Group of Seven (G7) Summit, hosted by Japan, took place in Hiroshima on May 19-21, 2023. Among other matters, the G7 Hiroshima Leaders’ Communiqué initiated the Hiroshima AI Process (HAP) – an effort by this bloc to determine a way forward to regulate artificial intelligence (AI).

 About Artificial Intelligence -

Ø  Artificial intelligence (AI) is the ability of a computer or a robot controlled by a computer to do tasks that are usually done by humans because they require human intelligence and discernment.

Ø  The term is frequently applied to the project of developing systems endowed with the intellectual processes characteristic of humans, such as the ability to reason, discover meaning, generalise, or learn from past experience.

Ø  AI algorithms are trained using large datasets so that they can identify patterns, make predictions and recommend actions, much like a human would, just faster and better.

What is Hiroshima AI Process?

Ø  At the annual Group of Seven (G7) Summit hosted by Japan, world leaders set in motion an effort to set common rules for governing artificial intelligence with the launch of the “Hiroshima AI Process”.

Ø  At the meeting, the participants agreed that they need to work quickly to identify both the benefits and the risks of generative AI, such as ChatGPT.

Ø  They also plan to continue discussions on how to protect copyright and tackle false information.

Ø  They made a plan for ministers from their countries to meet by the end of the year to compile some basic opinions, with the aim of establishing common rules on promoting trustworthy AI.

Ø  HAP will work in cooperation with the OECD and Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) will discuss on generative AI by the end of this year.

Likely outcome of the HAP -

Ø  For now, there are three ways in which the HAP can play out —

Ø  It enables the G7 countries to move towards a divergent regulation based on shared norms, principles and guiding values;

Ø  It becomes overwhelmed by divergent views among the G7 countries and fails to deliver any meaningful solution; or

Ø  It delivers a mixed outcome with some convergence on finding solutions to some issues but is unable to find common ground on many others.

What is Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)?

Ø  It is a multi-stakeholder initiative which aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice on AI by supporting cutting-edge research and applied activities on AI-related priorities.

Ø  Launched in June 2020 with 15 members, GPAI is the fruition of an idea developed within the G7.

Ø  At present, it has 29 members and India is also a member of this initiative.

Ø  Its secretariat is at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Under the Vision @ 2047 theme, the Union Home Minister chaired a meeting to further strengthen the disaster risk reduction system in the country to make India disaster resilient.

The Minister has also asked States to prepare a disaster management plan in conjunction with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in areas where seven new nuclear installations are to become operational.

About the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) -

Ø  NDMA is the apex body for Disaster Management in India and is headed by the Prime Minister of India.

Ø  Setting up of NDMA and the creation of an enabling environment for institutional mechanisms at the State and District levels is mandated by the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

Ø  NDMA is mandated to lay down the policies, plans and guidelines for Disaster Management.

Ø  Through NDMA, India envisions the development of an ethos of Prevention, Mitigation, Preparedness and Response.

The National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) 2016 -

Ø  It aims to make India disaster resilient and significantly reduce the loss of lives and assets.

Ø  The plan is based on the four priority themes of the “Sendai Framework,” namely —

Ø  Understanding disaster risk,

Ø  Improving disaster risk governance,

Ø  Investing in disaster reduction (through structural and non-structural measures) and

Ø  Disaster preparedness, early warning and building back better in the aftermath of a disaster.

Ø  Vision —

Ø  Make India disaster resilient,

Ø  Achieve substantial disaster risk reduction, and

Ø  Significantly decrease the losses of life, livelihoods, and assets (economic, physical, social, cultural, and environmental) by maximising the ability to cope with disasters at all levels of administration as well as among communities.

Nuclear and Radiological Emergency -

Emergency Preparedness for Nuclear Power Plants —

Ø  The proper implementation of countermeasures can significantly reduce the consequences of an emergency situation.

Ø  Therefore, it is mandatory for all nuclear facilities that there must be a comprehensive emergency preparedness plan.

Ø  Prior to the issuance of a licence for the operation of a nuclear facility, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) of India ensures that

Ø  The facility has the Emergency Response Manuals for the three main types of emergencies, viz., plant, on-site and off-site, and

Ø  The plans are in place to handle these types of emergencies.

Responsibilities of Nuclear Power Plant Operators —

Ø  This includes the arrangements required to promptly classify an emergency, mitigate the emergency, notify and recommend protective actions, etc.

Ø  They must make an assessment of the type and quantum of release of radioactivity under various accident conditions and the extent to which it can spread into the environment.

Child trafficking manifests in the form of domestic labour, forced child labour across industries, and illegal activities such as begging, organ trade and commercial sex purposes. Estimates show that children account for one in every three detected victims of trafficking worldwide; this rises to one in two in low-income countries. 

Child trafficking in India: Statistics -

Ø  As per data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), eight children were trafficked every day in India in 2021 — for labour, begging and sexual exploitation.

Ø  These numbers stood at 2,834 cases in 2018; 2,914 in 2019; 2,222 in 2020.

Ø  This data only includes confirmed cases of trafficking, which does not account for missing children.

Ø  Cases often go unreported due to a lack of awareness about the modalities of trafficking, reluctance to seek police help and socio-economic deprivation.

Ø  One child goes missing every eight minutes in India — with millions ending up in domestic slavery, sex work and forced labour.

Reasons behind child trafficking -

Sex trade industry and domestic labour —

Minor girls in the age bracket 15-18 years are more vulnerable to trafficking due to these reasons.

Economic factors —

Poverty, hunger, and lack of work are the main reasons for this.

Social factors —

The caste and community-based discrimination and unfair treatment in rural areas are also at the root of this problem.

Other factors —

Externalities such as the COVID-19 pandemic, armed conflict, and climate change further increases vulnerability for children. 

What has India done so far?

Status of India —

Ø  The 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report released by the U.S. Department of State categorises India as Tier 2 in terms of progress.

Ø  It implies that India “does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so”.

Laws governing anti-trafficking crimes —

Ø  India doesn’t have a composite anti-trafficking law that addresses prevention, protection, rehabilitation and compensation of survivors. There are, however, separate regulations that address different crimes related to trafficking.

Ø  The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (ITPA) is targeted at stopping immoral trafficking and sex work.

Ø  Experts, however, have criticised ITPA for falsely presuming that all trafficking is done for sex work only.

Ø  They say that it criminalises sex workers without providing sufficient legal recourse or scope for rehabilitation.

Ø  The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, prohibits and penalises the act of child marriage.

Ø  The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, prevents children from partaking in certain employments and regulates the conditions of work for children in other fields.

Ø  In 2016, an amendment completely banned the employment of children below 14 years.

Ø  However, adolescents aged 14-18 years are allowed to work in family-related businesses but not in fields that have hazardous working conditions.

Ø  India has pledged to eliminate child labour by 2025.

Ø  The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, prohibits systems of labour where people, including children, work under conditions of servitude to pay off debt, and also provides a framework for rehabilitating released labourers.

Ø  Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015, governs laws relating to children alleged and found to be in conflict with law.

Ø  The Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, makes commercial dealing in human organs a punishable offence.

Ø  Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, which seeks to prevent commercial sexual exploitation of children.

Ø  Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, revised Section 370 of the Indian Penal Code, which deals with buying and selling of any person as a slave, to include the concept of human trafficking.

Institutional setup —

India set up Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) in 2007.

AHTUs are tasked with —

Ø  addressing the existing gaps in the law enforcement response,

Ø  ensuring a victim-centric approach which ensures the ‘best interest of the victim/ survivor’, and

Ø  developing databases on traffickers.

Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care and Rehabilitation) Bill -

Ø  The MWCD published the Draft Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care and Rehabilitation) Bill in June 2021.

Ø  It has 11 chapters detailing measures to prevent, protect and rehabilitate victims.

Ø  There are specified penalties for offences divided into “trafficking” and “aggravated trafficking”.

Ø  The bill has —

Ø  widened the scope of victims to include transgender persons and others,

Ø  introduced mechanisms for the prevention and rehabilitation of victims (such as providing shelter and food) and

Ø  extended the framework to include cross-border trafficking cases.

Ø  It proposes district- and State-level “anti-trafficking units” with designated police officers and a National Anti-Trafficking Bureau which looks after investigations involving two or more States.

Ø  Investigations are required to be completed within 90 days of the offender’s arrest, and there are appointed sessions courts for speedy trials.

Challenges in preventing child trafficking -

Ø  Prevailing challenges include a lack of coordination among AHTUs and disjointed operations by State and Central Governments.

Ø  There is no comprehensive programme for tackling trafficking, an absent witness protection framework (the victim is also the witness).

Ø  There are challenges in accessing compensation —

Ø  Some states had not created the fund to compensate victims.

Ø  A lack of awareness about compensation and opaque documentation requirements bog down survivors.

Way forward -

Ø  There is a need to revisit existing laws, such as the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) 1986 Act, to plug legal holes around the minimum working age.

Ø  Children between the ages of 14 and 18 are also vulnerable to exploitation; in domestic labour.

Ø  There is need to cultivate awareness about different trafficking crimes, form targeted child protection schemes, provide survivors with psychological and emotional support systems during rehabilitation, and offer incentives to keep children in school.

Ø  The antidote to poverty-driven child labour is decent work for adults, so they can support their families and send their children to school, not to work.

Recent events (Twitter’s Ex CEO claims of censorship by Indian government and Data Breach on CoWin platform) reflect the gulf between the rhetoric and the reality of Digital India. The response to these events by several ministers including Press Information Bureau (PIB) does not seem satisfactory.

 Events and subsequent explanations by the Government -

Data Breach on the CoWin Platform —

Ø  In this serious data breach, sensitive personal details including date and place of vaccination, with Aadhaar, PAN, Passport, Voter ID, & Mobile numbers were circulating on the internet-based messaging platform Telegram.

Ø  The Union Government responded with denials. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare termed the reports mischievous, and Ministry of Electronics and IT (MEITY) tweeted that sensitive information had emerged from previously stolen data.

Ø  Later, PIB claimed thatCo-WIN portal of the Health Ministry is completely safe with adequate safeguards for data privacy.

Twitter’s Ex CEO Claims of Censorship by Indian Government —

Ø  He stated that the Indian government coerced Twitter with censorship directions regarding the farmers’ protest with threats to the platform’s continued operations and staff safety in India.

Ø  MEITY responded to these claims saying that Twitter was in “repeated and continuous violations of India law” and at times “weaponised misinformation.”

Past Incidents of Data Breach Include -

Ø  The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) breach in August 2022 and

Ø  The ransomware attack on the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in November 2022.

Ø  Data on RailYatri portal has reportedly been breached in 2020, 2022 and 2023.

Ø  Issues with the Government’s response to frequent data breaches -

Ø  The Government is in a state of Denial — The statements of denial are by now a template for public officials to overcome a media frenzy.

Ø  Continued Ineffectiveness of CERT-In — The Computer Emergency Response Team (CERTIn), which is tasked with such investigations, has often maintained silence, and not made any of its technical findings public.

Ø  Lack of National Strategy on Cyber Security — All this is compounded by the lack of a National Cyber Security Strategy — a draft put to public consultation in December 2019 awaits finalisation.

Lack of a Law on Data Protection —

Ø  Also, India does not have any data protection law requiring breach notifications to impacted users.

Ø  Even the proposed Draft Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022, being mooted by MeitY would by notification exempt government entities from compliance.

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) –

Ø  DPI can enable essential society-wide functions and services such as identification, payments, and data exchange.

Ø  Recently MeitY organised a two-day Global DPI Summit. With this, DPI has become a tool of geo-political advocacy for the Union government to coincide with the G20 Summit.

Existing DPI in India -

Ø  The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has expanded economic and livelihood opportunities by facilitating the ease of commercial transactions for millions of Indians.

Ø  However, DPI framework is much more than UPI as is clear from the composition of what is termed as the “IndiaStack”.

Ø  IndiaStack includes, for identification, a biometric identification system Aadhaar, the contact tracing application AarogyaSetu, the vaccination process implemented through the CoWIN platform.

Ø  Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) which is Amazon-style marketplace for government procurement through Government E-Marketplace (GEM) and an attempt to break market concentration in digital markets.

Issues with existing DPI -

Weak Governance Processes —

Ø  The first question is whether these platforms have been created with a legislative mandate.

Ø  Except for Aadhaar, none of these platforms has a legal definition of their functions, roles, and responsibilities from an Act of Parliament.

Ø  Many are developed as joint ventures, or special purpose vehicles, that avoid accountability mechanisms such as audits by the CAG or transparency mandates under the Right to Information Act.

Lack of efficiency in technical development —

Ø  There have been several instances of glitches and exclusion errors of Aadhaar.

Ø  The AarogyaSetu app failed to prevent Covid infections.

Ø  And the recent tender to overhaul the GEM platform after complaints from suppliers also points the lack of efficiency in technical development contrary to government’s claim.

Unnecessary Data Guzzlers —

Ø  The common aspect of all such platforms is them being data guzzlers where personal information is gathered from Indians that goes beyond the technical requirements.

Ø  This only results in multiple individual and social harms, including data breaches.

What should be Government’s strategy to fix such issues?

Ø  The government should focus on providing statutory status to these platforms so that data can be saved from further data breaches.

Ø  Digital systems should not be without constitutional frameworks.

Ø  Considering individual harms, the creation of regulatory and institutional frameworks should not be rejected to favour the mirage of innovation.

Conclusion -

Every Indian hopes that India would succeed in its digital revolution and become a role model for the rest of the globe. However, if IndiaStack is not built on the Constitution of India, then just like recent events of data breach our expectations will continue to be breached.