Introduce UCC Bill in Parliament instead of pushing it via states: Omar Abullah to BJP

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said the BJP should introduce the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill in Parliament instead of pushing it through individual states.

Saying the BJP should not bring the UCC “through the backdoor”, the CM added, “If you have the numbers, bring it to Parliament. Why are you doing it through different states? Anyway, within their own NDA, not everyone agrees with this. According to reports, Janata Dal (United) has said this won’t be implemented in Bihar.”

“The way their own allies are not in favour of it, I don’t think they will be able to get it passed in Parliament. That is perhaps why they are taking this route,” Abdullah told reporters outside his residence here.


Read more: 21 NDA-ruled states to implement Uniform Civil Code before 2029, says Amit Shah

Abdullah said the UCC would not be “universal” if implemented only in states ruled by the BJP, as the party does not govern all states in the country. “The whole country is not ruled by the BJP. There are a number of states and Union Territories that the BJP does not rule. Therefore, if you apply it only to BJP states, it is not a universal [law]. And something that is of this nature should not be decided by individual states; it has to be decided by the country as a whole. The country as a whole is represented not in the states, but in Parliament,” he said.

The chief minister said the BJP had not brought some of the key legislations it had been “going to town” about in Parliament.

“Up until now, whatever legislation they spoke about, whether it was ‘One Nation, One Election’ or reservation, they did not bring those to Parliament. Now, for this one as well, they are talking about bringing it through the states,” said Abdullah.

On reports of de-escalation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, Abdullah said it was a welcome step. “Anything that reduces tension on the Line of Control or the Line of Actual Control is a good step. Particularly for those people who live close to it, and we know how difficult it is for people living near the LoC or LAC. Similarly, we hope, over time, that along the LoC also, things will get better,” he said.

Read more: Omar Abdullah demands global scrutiny for PoK violence, compares to Kashmir unrest

On China hailing India’s foreign policy, Abdullah said New Delhi’s foreign policy had always been independent and there was no need to seek validation from other countries.


“Our foreign policy is our own. Why do we look for other countries’ certificates? The danger with something like this is that tomorrow, were China to say something against our foreign policy, then what will you do? Therefore, I think we should not give too much importance to what other countries say about our foreign policy, whether positive or negative, because we can’t cherry-pick,” Abdullah said, adding, “Tomorrow, if there is opposition, we will say, ‘Don’t interfere in our policy.’”

The chief minister said the BRICS Summit’s condemnation of the Pahalgam attack of April 2025 was a success of India’s foreign policy. “The fact that the Pahalgam attack was condemned (at BRICS Summit) is a big thing. Please see how many allies of Pakistan were in that room. Therefore, for even Pahalgam to be mentioned by name, that in itself is a success of our foreign policy,” he said.