Freedom of religion and uniform civil code

Religion is the relation between man and his creator. Organized religion consists of two parts one that is spiritual and controls or guides the methods of worship and belief and the other social or legal which controls the social relations. The spiritual part of the religion is basic inalienable part and is essential for the adherents of a religion to follow.
Secularism is the basic structure of the Constitution of India and hence cannot be removed from it. Secularism means that the State shall neither promote nor demote any religion, nor discriminate on the ground of religion in public sphere nor shall there be any State religion. Secularism basically means that the State shall not interfere in man's relation with his creator.
In the chapter of fundamental rights, the right of equality is the first right guaranteed by the Constitution. Articles 14-18 strictly prohibit any discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.
The freedom of religion covered by articles 25-28 further ensures that the various practices of religious groups as well as denominions shall be protected subjected to the restriction on the ground of public order, health and morality. The basic inalienable practices of any religion are protected by the Constitution.
Article 44 of the Constitution provides for the uniform civil code. Article 44 comes under the chapter on directive principles of state policy which are directions to the state to implement when the conditions are favorable and in accordance to the needs of the society. The civil law covers the regions of marriage, divorce, adoption, maintenance and inheritance. The Hindu law was codified in 1955-56 and various aspects of it were changed as a result. There is a codified law governing some aspects of Muslim divorce and maintenance which can be applied at the desire of the parties concerned. Muslims can adopt only under the secular law. Christians have a codified personal law. The Code of Criminal Procedure,1973, also deals with maintenance. The uniform civil law aims at unifying these divergent laws and providing same law for all citizens irrespective of their religion. The uniform civil code does not effect the spiritual and the basic tenets of a religion which are protected by the provisions in the chapter on fundamental rights.

Right to peaceful protest, a fundamental right

In the case of Anita Thakur v State of J&K, the Supreme Court observed that the right of peaceful protest against government action is a fundamental right and the state cannot claim sovereign immunity as a defense in case of its violation. The Court observed that peaceful protests come under the category of freedom and speech and expression and freedom of assembly and are covered by the provisions of Article 19(1)(a)(b)&(c) subject to the restrictions of law and order and sovereignty of the state, The court observed that sometimes such protests turn violent and police action is required to protect public property but the use of excessive force by the authority is unwarranted.
The court observed that the defence of sovereign immunity cannot be applied in case of violation of fundamental rights. The violation of fundamental rights gives rise to liability under public law as well as criminal law and law of torts. Pecuniary compensation maybe awarded for the violation of fundamental rights. Further, it is the state which is held liable and not the individual policemen and it is the State which has to pay compensation. The court further observed that the standard of proof for police brutality, custodial violence and torture and of putting state accountability for the same is very high and only in cases of incontrovertible violations such remedy can be made available.

Alimony

Recently, a court in Delhi has denied a woman's plea for alimony and has instead advised her to take up a job. In the present case, the husband had claimed that being a gold medalist in master of science, the wife was capable of earning more than him. The wife had claimed alimony amount of Rs12000 from her husband. The court had also rejected the contention of the wife that being inexperienced she will find it difficult to get a job as well as her plea for her husband to escort her during her job search. The court found her capable enough of managing herself and rejected all of her demands.
Though it is commonly presented that alimony can be given only to the estranged wife, the courts have earlier ordered payment to the husband from the wife's assets. Alimony or maintenance that is awarded depends upon a number of factors including:
(1) The income, assets, lifestyle of the husband as well as the number of dependents on him.
(2) the demands presented including the maintenance of dependent children
(3) The income, assets, lifestyle and qualifications of the wife.
Getting alimony is not an exclusive right of the wife and it depends upon the circumstances of the case in question. The court weighs in various factors including the incomes, lifestyles, assets and dependents on the estranged spouses before giving an order on the same.