A uniform civil code can resolve multiple conflicts plaguing India

This can be compared to the umpteen number of debates and conflicting opinions expressed both in confines of drawing-rooms and on social-media Fora about banning of the ‘triple talaq’ among Muslim citizens of India or the comparative analysis sought to be made by likening ‘ghunghat’ to the ‘burka’ or ‘pernicious practice of purdah’ and screams to ban the use of these in public places like malls and airports!

Those enjoined with the task of dealing with such disputes as administrators, lawyers or leaders of legislative assemblies and the Parliament often view this as a dispute to be resolved by going into the historical background and crying hoarse in diverse vernacular tongues of the river water disputes dating back to the foreign rulers centuries prior to the carving of a new Nation named – ‘Bharat, that is India’.

Those members of the general public like students working on dissertation paper or press-persons reporting on such conflicting opinions that began much before their date of the birth resort to Google and Wikipedia knowledge little realizing that what is fed gets vomited by search engines.The data (without prejudice to either technology or the users and providers of such engines), cannot be taken to be sanctimonious and the truth (whole truth and nothing but the truth)!

So, where does one look to end such depressing conflicts and usher in a new world order of peaceful coexistence and harmonious lifestyle?

First, eye-opener ought to be that we are all but leading mortal lives. Nobody is immortal and even the greatest of leaders meet their death. So, who or what is the real organism that lives on forever – beyond our lifetimes? It is the structure and the way of life – culture, religion, nation designed by brickwork of a Constitution. As such, it is wrong and incorrect to be passé.

There comes a time in the course of history of mankind when it falls upon one statesman to reload at all the existing gamut of man-made structures. The visionary feels and perceives the pain of all those wronged by arbitrary and misdirected missives popularly called as the policies of a given dispensation. By dint of sheer hard work and laborious study entailing a plethora of untold situations of hardships and gruelling sacrifices, he is positioned in a pinnacle of power.

Today, in the Indian sub-continent, it is Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has taken upon himself the need to redesign equations of life of India with immediate Asian giants such as China, Japan, Asia, Emirates, Singapore as well as Russia, UK, USA, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, South Africa, Brazil and others. But, as we all notice, the heart beats for India. As such, poverty assumes a place of pride. Economic poverty, however, can only stay perpetuated by a poverty of thought. This often gets reflected when the policies of predecessor Governments are followed meekly with either mere cosmetic changes or no change at all by successive Governments.

The strong will of the headman of a village can definitely ensure the maintenance of both cleanliness, hygiene as well as peace through enforcement of law and order under his jurisdiction. We are aware of the existence of a few border villages between Maharashtra and Karnataka where record disputes have not accorded them identity as being demarcated villages of either State (and therefore the villagers do not belong to the nation nor can they by such an extended logic, be considered to exist on Planet Earth itself).

What ails our system? It is often the case that those places at the helm of affairs of State are either not very well informed, learned people with vision or determination and grit or that they are supported by uncaring and nonchalant career-bureaucrats at the fag end of their working life. In few other instances, non-issues are made out to be issues and such a ‘politicisation’ has resulted in a sidetracking of the core duty of national-development and social-welfare.

Returning to the subject of ‘conflicts’ over river-water sharing and such other ‘natural resources belonging to all of humanity’, we are but faced with a definite need to go to the root of all frictions!

Are we one nation? Why then do we have diverse personal laws? What stops us from weaving together the fabric of one nation through a uniform civil code?

Are the ‘directive principles of State policy’ mere directions or do they interfere with the providing of ‘fundamental rights’ enshrined and ruled on many occasions as being mandatory and compulsory rights of enjoyment of every citizen of the country?

What prevents or stops the declaration of the abolition of all disputes over river-water sharing or squabbling about borders by a decisive measure such as nationalisation of rivers and linking of all waterways and rivers of the country?

Why cannot the National Disaster Relief Agency be permitted to undertake the building of rubber-dams, across every ten kilometres stretch of rivers in the country?

All conflicts are as imaginary or real as the faith reposed by the voting masses in any particular political party or motley group of alliance partners in any popular Government.

Neither committees nor boards and commissions can aid, guide and resolve such endless continuous conflicts whose roots date back to the pre-independence era. The villainy of those monstrous rulers in bygone eras is what has caused a ‘Quit India’ movement and the independence of this great land after a bitter partition into different countries. If one goes back to the antecedents of the region, Angkor Wat temple of Indonesia or the ruins correlating to Mahabharata in Kandahar of Afghanistan or Persia would throw a wholly different solution.

So, just as demonetisation-exercise was successfully implemented by this very Government, which enjoys an absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, a uniform civil code needs to be ushered in, most urgently. This is a necessary foundation for a ‘New India’ which is being bandied about so much by little-knowing as well as all-knowing commentators in contemporary society.

Voices of reason are still sought to be stifled by evil demagoguery. Freedom entails with it an inherent right to uphold righteousness and the words of ‘good faith’!

Conflicts are ‘anti-peace’ always. Peaceful remedies can only be involved when the sane aren’t dubbed insane by the ludicrous obstinate evil ones. As the microbes, the anti-peace and parochial people are everywhere. Force Majeure alone appears to be the plausible solution to end all these inhuman and wasteful conflicts. But until a moment of reckoning or the advent of Armageddon to wash away these misplaced animosities amongst compatriots, a statesman, leader like Modi must address the real need of a uniform civil code and simplification of laws in order to weed out rotten elements with fissiparous tendencies in both public life as well as page-3 circuit who often are media-managers of public-opinion.

Procrastination and political correctness have been the undoing of several governments across the world. This must not be repeated in our country when a new upsurge has occurred in trust-quotient of a sizeable population over the last four years and most of us are looking to further extension of this absolutely over-whelming majority for the next decade and more.

In the end, it may not be out of place to mention that step-motherly treatment meted out to southern States could’ve the reason for regional parties to have got embedded in power, be it in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala or even Karnataka and Pondicherry. Perhaps, it is high time to nurture the region as have the seven sister-States of North-eastern India been done by this Government.

End internal conflicts. External conflicts would disappear. May a new dawn be ushered in with the advent of a uniform civil code as soon as possible in India. Then, the honourable Supreme Court would not be required to devote precious time and attention to multiple issues of conflict plaguing a certain religion or sect of this country.

Rivers are Goddesses under Hindu culture which alone flows throughout our ‘live and let live’ policy of tolerance and co-existence. Unity alone can help tend to the diversity. May wiser counsel prevail over the high priests of politics in this era.