How Rajasthan uniform civil code may redefine marriage, live-in, inheritance

The Uniform Civil Code Bill seeks mandatory registration of marriage and live-ins, bar on second marriage if spouse is alive and equal inheritance for daughtersRajasthan has taken a major step towards a uniform civil code (UCC), but the proposed law is about much more than making personal laws uniform across religions.The Rajasthan Uniform Civil Code Bill, 2026, introduced in the legislative assembly on August 21, seeks to define how marriage, divorce, inheritance, maintenance and even live-in relationships are legally recognised and regulated. The bill has not yet become law; the assembly could not take up a detailed discussion before it was adjourned. Now, the legislation is expected to return when the House meets again, most likely in November.Prepared after consultations by a five-member committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, the proposed code is the Bhajan Lal Sharma government's attempt to create a common civil framework irrespective of religion. But its most consequential impact could be on ordinary family relationships.Marriage: Same rituals, new conditions The proposed UCC does not abolish religious marriage ceremonies. Hindus can continue with rituals such as Saptapadi, Muslims with Nikah, Sikhs with Anand Karaj and Christians with their customary ceremonies. What changes is the legal framework surrounding marriage.A marriage would have to be registered within 60 days. Failure to register would attract penalties, although non-registration by itself would not invalidate the marriage. The UCC bill also establishes common conditions for a valid marriage, including the existing minimum age of 21 for men and 18 for women.The bigger change is that a person whose spouse is alive cannot marry again. The second marriage would be prohibited and treated as invalid. This effectively brings a common prohibition on polygamy across communities, including personal law systems where a second marriage has historically been permitted.Common grounds for divorceThe bill seeks to replace community-specific divorce rules with common grounds. These include adultery, cruelty, desertion for two years, conversion, specified mental or physical conditions, renunciation of the world, disappearance for seven years and failure to comply with maintenance-related orders.It also provides for divorce by mutual consent, where the couple has lived separately for at least a year and both agree to end the marriage. Courts could relax the waiting requirement in cases of exceptional hardship or serious circumstances. Divorce and nullity orders would also have to be registered.Live-ins enter legal systemA striking feature is the decision to bring live-in relationships under a statutory framework. A couple living together in a relationship resembling marriage would have to submit a joint statement for registration, while the end of the relationship would also have to be formally recorded. Crucially, a live-in relationship cannot be registered if either partner already has a living spouse. Certain prohibited degrees of relationship would also be excluded.The government says the objective is to protect partners and children. Children born from live-in relationships would receive legal recognition and rights relating to maintenance and inheritance. But the provision also raises a larger question: how much should the state know about the private lives of consenting adults? That is likely to become one of the most contested aspects of the legislation.Inheritance: Daughters get equal footingThe bill proposes common succession rules and equal inheritance rights for sons and daughters. It covers both intestate succession—where there is no will—and testamentary succession.In the absence of a will, property would pass through specified categories of legal heirs, beginning with the surviving spouse, children and parents. It also recognises the inheritance rights of a child in the womb if subsequently born alive.For women, this could be among the most significant changes, particularly where inheritance has historically been determined by community-specific personal laws or family practices.However, the proposed Rajasthan UCC is not completely uniform. There is a major exception. Scheduled Tribes and communities whose customary rights are constitutionally protected are excluded from the proposed code. The government has justified this on grounds of protecting tribal customs and traditions.The proposed UCC is therefore less about changing wedding rituals and more about standardising the legal consequences of family relationships. It seeks to put marriage, divorce, succession and live-in relationships under one framework while simultaneously trying to preserve religious ceremonies and tribal customs.Its real test, however, will come after the political debate in the legislative assembly: whether compulsory registration can be implemented without creating a bureaucratic burden, whether live-in regulation survives constitutional scrutiny, and whether a common inheritance and marriage regime can balance gender equality with religious and customary rights.For now, Rajasthan has introduced the framework. The more consequential battle—over how far the state should regulate personal life in the name of uniformity—has only begun.Subscribe to India Today Magazine- EndsPublished By: Yashwardhan SinghPublished On: Sep 1, 2026 17:39 IST