Gearing up for UCC, Assam decides to repeal Muslim Marriages Act ahead of LS polls

News Network
February 24, 2024

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Ahead of introducing an Uttarakhand-like bill on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), the Assam government has decided to repeal the Assam Muslim Marriages and Divorces Registration Act of 1935.

The State Cabinet, which met late on Friday night, approved the Assam Repealing Ordinance, 2024, for repealing the British-era marriage and divorce Act specific to Muslims.

Tourism Minister and government spokesperson, Jayanta Malla Baruah told journalists after the meeting that the decision to repeal the Act was made as the State is heading towards the UCC.

“The Chief Minister (Himanta Biswa Sarma) has been clear about the UCC. So, we took the very important decision to repeal Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Act, 1935,” he said.

“Muslim marriages and divorces will no longer be registered under this Act. We want all marriages to be registered under the Special Marriage Act,” Mr. Baruah said, adding the Act was being misused for marriages of minors.

“We felt it was an obsolete pre-Independence Act that has lost its relevance today and we believe its repeal will be a big step against child marriage,” he said.

The minister said district commissioners and district registrars will be authorised to take custody of registration records currently in the custody of 94 Muslim marriage registrars on the repeal of the legislation under the overall supervision, guidance, and control of the State’s Inspector General of Registration.

“A one-time compensation of ₹2 lakh will be provided to each Muslim marriage registrar for their rehabilitation after the Act is repealed,” Mr. Baruah said.

Posting the Cabinet decisions on X, the Chief Minister said the provisions of the Muslim Marriages Act offer “scope for registering marriages of intended persons below 21 years (for males) and 18 years (for females) and there is hardly any monitoring for implementation of the Act”.

Among the other decisions made by the Cabinet was on protecting the land rights of the indigenous communities.

“For the protection of land rights of the indigenous communities, Ahom, Koch-Rajbongshi, and Gurkha communities are to be included in the list of protected classes of persons in the Balipara (north-central Assam) Tribal Belt who have been occupying the land prior to 2011,” the minutes of the meeting said.

“This will protect land rights of the indigenous communities who are bona fide Indian citizens,” it said.

The opposition Congress and the minority-based All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) criticised the State’s BJP-led government for targeting Muslims through the “unconstitutional step” of repealing the Act.

Congress MLA Abdur Rashid Mandal said the Cabinet nod for repealing the Act dealing with marriages and divorces of Muslims was a deliberate attempt to cater to Hindu sentiments at the expense of the Muslim community.

“The Assam government could not bring in any Bill on polygamy or the UCC. So, they have targeted this Act although the Cabinet does not have the right to repeal or amend a constitutional right,” AIUDF legislator Rafiqul Islam said.

“This is a policy to target Muslims ahead of the Lok Sabha elections,” he added.

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News Network
November 21,2025

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Udupi: The Malpe Police have arrested two men from Uttar Pradesh for allegedly sharing classified information related to Indian Navy vessels with individuals in Pakistan, posing a serious threat to national security.

According to a complaint filed by the CEO of Udupi Cochin Shipyard, Malpe—an institution under the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways—the prime accused, Rohit (29), was working as an insulator through subcontractor M/S Shushma Marine Pvt Ltd. He had earlier served at Cochin Shipyard Limited in Kochi, Kerala, where naval ships are under construction.

Udupi SP Hariram Shankar said the accused had unlawfully shared, via WhatsApp, confidential identification numbers of Navy-related ships and other classified details while working in Kerala, allegedly for illegal gains.

After joining the Malpe shipyard unit, Rohit reportedly continued collecting sensitive information through a friend in Kochi and circulated it to unauthorised individuals, violating national security protocols and potentially endangering India’s sovereignty, unity, and integrity.

Based on the complaint, Malpe Police registered a case under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923.

A police team led by Karkala Subdivision Assistant Superintendent of Police Harsha Priyamvada—along with PSI Anil Kumar D, ASI Harish, and PC Ravi Jadhav—conducted the investigation and arrested the two accused, identified as Rohit (29) and Santri (37), both residents of Sultanpur district, Uttar Pradesh.

The duo was produced before the court, which remanded them in judicial custody till December 3. Further investigation is in progress.

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News Network
November 21,2025

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Local authorities say the Israeli military has expanded the so-called “yellow line” truce demarcation in Gaza City and repositioned its forces deeper into the territory in violation of a ceasefire agreement that came into force on October 10, besieging dozens of Palestinian families.

Gaza’s Government Media Office announced in a statement on Thursday that Israeli forces widened the boundary by shifting the markers, and advanced roughly 300 meters (984 feet) into the neighborhoods of Ash-Shaaf, An-Nazzaz and Baghdad Street.

The move pushed further into civilian areas, trapping families who were unable to flee as tanks rolled forward, it added.

“The fate of many of these families remains unknown amidst the shelling that targeted the area,” the office said, adding that the expansion of the yellow line shows a “blatant disregard” for the ceasefire deal.

On Friday, sources said the Israeli military carried out continued air and artillery strikes inside the so-called “yellow line” east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

According to the reports, Israeli warplanes and tanks targeted areas within the zone. One Palestinian was reported killed and several others wounded in the strikes, the sources said.

The fresh aggression came only a day after 25 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City and Khan Younis on Wednesday.

The media office reported that Israel has consistently violated the truce deal since its implementation last month, with near-daily attacks by air, artillery and direct shootings.

The office said over 400 violations have been documented. These breaches have resulted in the deaths of more than 300 Palestinians and left hundreds injured.

The Government Media Office in Gaza urged the guarantors of the ceasefire — the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey — to take swift action to halt the ongoing violations and facilitate the delivery of food, shelter materials, medical aid, and infrastructure equipment.

The so-called “yellow line,” set out in the agreement between Israel and Hamas resistance movement, refers to a non-physical partition where the Israeli military repositioned itself when the truce deal took effect.

It has allowed Israel, which routinely fires at Palestinians who approach the line, to retain control over more than half of the Gaza Strip.

International bodies, including the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry, the International Association of Genocide Scholars, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, B’Tselem, and other rights groups, have concluded that the Israeli war on Gaza amounts to genocide.

In the attacks in Gaza since October 2023, Israel has killed at least 69,546 people and injured 170,833 others, leveling large swaths of the territory and displacing almost all of the population. 

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News Network
December 2,2025

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Bengaluru: 'Nati koli saaru' (country chicken curry) considered one of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s favourites along with steaming hot idlis was on the breakfast menu at Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s residence on Tuesday, according to official sources.

The spread also included 'nati koli' fry, vada and pongal, among other items, they said.

In an apparent show of unity, Siddaramaiah visited Shivakumar’s residence for breakfast, just days after the two leaders shared a meal amid a simmering power tussle in the state Congress.

Siddaramaiah drove to the Deputy CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar, where he was received by Shivakumar and his brother D K Suresh, who is a former Congress MP.

Suresh and Kunigal MLA H D Ranganath, a relative of Shivakumar, joined them for breakfast, which featured a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

Speaking to reporters later, Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar had invited him during his visit to the CM’s residence for breakfast on Saturday.

Asked about the difference between the two meals, the chief minister said, "At his (Shivakumar’s) house it was non-veg, while at my house it was veg. He is a vegetarian, I am a non-vegetarian. I had not prepared non-veg. I told DK to get chicken from the village as you won’t get the original in Bengaluru."

Shivakumar said he had initially invited Siddaramaiah to his residence, but the CM had suggested visiting his place first and reciprocating later. "It was a vegetarian breakfast at the CM’s house on Saturday," he noted.

"Today, I invited him (the CM) to my house. He enjoyed the breakfast, which had his Mysuru taste," Shivakumar added. At this point, Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar’s wife is also from Mysuru.

Saturday’s breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s official residence, held as part of efforts by the Congress high command to ease tensions in the leadership dispute between the two, reportedly included idlis and sambar, according to official sources.

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