Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Friday that the state government will present a bill to prohibit polygamy during the forthcoming budget session of the assembly. Sarma revealed that the bill's draft is currently under review by the Law Department.
Addressing a press conference, Sarma said, "We are lining up an act to ban polygamy in the state during the budget session of the assembly. It is with the Law Department for vetting," as reported by PTI.
The Chief Minister expressed the government's anticipation for the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) legislation, which will be deliberated upon during a special four-day session of the Uttarakhand assembly commencing on February 5.
"We will also closely monitor the development of Uttarakhand. If the Uttarakhand UCC bill is laid on February 5, then we will see if we are in a position to implement the entire UCC (bill of Uttarakhand)," he added.
The budget session of the Assam assembly is scheduled to commence on February 5 and conclude on February 28, with the presentation of the budget for the next fiscal year on February 12.
Critics, including opposition parties, previously denounced the government's decision to enact a law against polygamy as "diversionary" and "communal," particularly amidst ongoing discussions on the Uniform Civil Code by the Law Commission.
In July 2023, Chief Minister Sarma had conveyed the state government's support for the UCC and expressed the desire to immediately ban polygamy in Assam.
In May of the previous year, Sarma had announced the formation of a four-member expert committee led by Justice (Retd) Rumi Kumari Phukan to scrutinise the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Act, 1937, and Article 25 of the Constitution in connection to the Directive Principles of State Policy for a Uniform Civil Code.
Following the committee's report submission in August, Sarma proclaimed that legislation on the subject would be introduced within the current financial year. The committee unanimously agreed that the state has the authority to formulate its own laws to prohibit polygamy.
Subsequently, the Assam government sought public opinion on the matter, initiating the legislative process for enacting laws against polygamy.