Assam sets up eight-member panel to frame rules for UCC implementation

The Assam government has constituted an eight-member committee to frame rules for implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state. The panel has been directed to submit its draft rules within a month, officials said.

According to a notification issued by the Political Department, Home and Political Department Secretary Deba Prasad Misra will head the committee.

The other members include Finance Special Commissioner and Secretary Partha Pratim Majumdar, Legislative Secretary Geetanjali D Saikia, Welfare of Minorities and Development Secretary Farida Samsul, and Home and Political Additional Secretary Mridul Kr Das.

The committee has been formed following the passage of the Assam Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2026, by the state Assembly on May 27. The legislation proposes a common legal framework governing marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships, irrespective of religion.

The Bill has been forwarded to the Centre for the President's assent, Home and Political Department Additional Chief Secretary Ajay Tewari said in an order dated October 13, which was made available to the media on Thursday.

With its passage, Assam became the third state in India, after Uttarakhand and Gujarat, to approve a Uniform Civil Code Bill.

The legislation seeks to prohibit polygamy and make the registration of live-in relationships compulsory. It also prescribes penalties for violations, including imprisonment of up to seven years for bigamy or polygamy and up to three months for failing to register a live-in relationship.

However, the proposed law excludes members of the Scheduled Tribes residing in Assam from its purview.