CHAPTER 77: CHAPTER 70: ONTO THE NEXT TASK

Two days have already passed, since Arjun met with Dr. Ambedkar. He now sat at his mahogany desk, carefully reviewing the new bill draft he had written.

The constitutional draft was already complete and verified by the entire cabinet, after Law Minister K.M. Munshi had given it his final approval. But this document spread before him was different, more controversial, more transformative than anything in the constitution itself.

The Uniform Civil Code. The pages were covered with his neat handwriting, corrections in red ink, and margin notes. This wasn’t just another piece of legislation. This would reshape the social fabric that bound India’s people together.

Three men sat across from him in leather chairs. Law Minister K.M. Munshi, his wire-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, held a thick folder of legal precedents. Beside him, was Sardar Patel along with some senior official from the Home Ministry and the Bureau of National Ideology & Religious Oversight.

Arjun leaned back in his chair. "Gentlemen, we have a problem that goes to the heart of what India will become."

He paused, observing their keen faces. "We’ve unified this land politically. We’ve begun unifying it economically with our development projects. But socially? We remain a collection of separate communities, each following different laws, different customs, different ideas about justice itself."

Munshi shifted in his seat. "Prime Minister, you’re referring to personal laws?"

"Exactly." Arjun turned to Munshi. "A Hindu woman in Delhi lives under one set of marriage and inheritance laws. A Muslim woman in East Bengal lives under completely different ones. A Christian in Kerela follows yet another system. How can we call this equal citizenship?"

Patel nodded slowly. "The disparities are significant, especially regarding women’s rights."

"Disparities, Sardar ji?" Arjun’s voice lowered a bit. "That’s a polite word for injustice." He shook his head and picked up a legal brief.

"Under Muslim personal law, a man could instantly and irrevocably divorce his wife by saying or writing "talaq" three times in one sitting. Under Christian personal law, divorce is virtually impossible.

Under one system, a woman might inherit equally with her brothers. Under another, she gets a fraction. Where’s the equality in that?"

Munshi cleared his throat carefully. "These are ancient traditions, Prime Minister. Communities guard them fiercely. There have already been a lot of debates over this topic in past. Any attempt to change them..."

"Will be met with resistance. I understand that." Arjun replied, his gaze steady. "But what’s the alternative? Do we build a nation where your rights depend on which community you belong to? Where justice changes based on your birth?"

He opened a fresh file and spread its contents on the desk. "This is my proposal for a Uniform Civil Code. One law for all Indians, regardless of religion or community."

The room fell silent. Even the mild traffic noise outside seemed to fade.

"The core principle is simple," Arjun continued. "Every Indian citizen will stand equal before the law in matters of marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption. No exceptions."

Munshi leaned forward, studying the documents. "Prime Minister, this will have far reaching consequences. We’re basically interfering with the beliefs that people had followed for as long as they can remember.

Take polygamy, for instance. For Muslims, it is religiously permitted, but with this..."

"Was, Munshi ji. Not anymore," Arjun corrected. "Under this code, no Indian citizen may have more than one spouse at a time. Period. Any such marriage will be legally void and criminally punishable."

At this time, Patel spoke up. "The orthodox Muslim clergy will see this as a direct attack on their religious freedom."

Arjun’s expression didn’t change. "And I’ll tell them the same thing I’d tell any group that claims religious freedom to deny others their basic rights. Your freedom to practice religion ends where another citizen’s right to equality begins."

He stood up, walking to his bookshelf where leather bound volumes of law and philosophy sat in neat rows.

"We’re not erasing anyone’s faith, gentlemen. Muslims will still pray in mosques, Hindus in temples, Sikhs in Gurudwaras and so on. But when it comes to civil matters, marriage, property, custody, we’ll all follow the same rules."

"The timeline?" Munshi asked, already calculating the legal complexities.

"The draft goes to the Constituent Assembly between January to February, after the Constitution is officially signed." Arjun returned to his seat. "I want this done right, but I also want it done quickly. The longer we wait, the more entrenched the opposition becomes."

Bureau official made a note. "What about enforcement, Prime Minister? Some communities may simply ignore the new laws."

"That’s where you people comes in," Arjun said, nodding to the valid question. "We’ve already begun reaching out to progressive voices in various communities earlier. We will use them.

Moderate clerics who understand that reform is inevitable. Women’s groups who’ve been fighting these battles for years. We build coalitions of support."

"And those who refuse to cooperate?"

Arjun’s voice went cold. "The IB will monitor any groups that incite violence or widespread civil disobedience. We won’t tolerate religious extremism disguised as tradition."

He picked up another document from his desk. "The National Publicity Unit will handle the messaging. We’re not attacking religion, instead we’re modernizing India.

We’re ensuring that an Indian woman has the same rights whether she’s born in Kashmir or Kanyakumari, in Gandhara or Shwetagram. We’re creating one nation, not a collection of feuding tribes."

Munshi adjusted his glasses. "The legal framework will need to be comprehensive. Marriage age, divorce procedures, inheritance ratios, adoption rights..."

"Then I’ll have to leave them to you, Munshi-ji," Arjun smiled as he replied. "But the principle guides everything: equal treatment, equal rights, and equal justice. A woman should be able to initiate divorce as easily as a man.

Children should inherit based on need and merit, not gender. These aren’t radical ideas, they’re basic human rights.

But of course, one also needs to ensure that such principles are not exploited. Like women unjustly exploiting their rights. But well, we have already covered that aspect in the Constitution draft."

At this time, Bureau official leaned forward. "Prime Minister, some will argue that this destroys India’s diversity, that we’re forcing uniformity on a naturally varied society."

Arjun smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. "Diversity in language, food, festivals, art, that’s beautiful and should be preserved. But diversity in justice? Diversity in human rights? That’s just another word for inequality. Something that Bharat won’t tolerate."

He returned to his chair, signalling the meeting’s end. "Gentlemen, we will be judged not by how well we preserved old traditions, but by how effectively we built a just society. Some changes are difficult. Some are necessary. And this...this is both."

As the three men gathered their papers and prepared to leave, Arjun added quietly,

"The Western powers will be watching how we handle social reform. They will most definitely try to paint these measures as interfering with the religious rights of the people. Heh...I’m sure even Islamic bloc will jump into the fray.

But we won’t budge. No outsiders will tell us how we do our things. This Uniform Civil Code will show them, and our own people, that we’re serious about building a truly progressive nation."

As the door closed behind them, leaving Arjun alone with Patel, who chose to stay.

With others gone, Patel made himself more comfortable in his chair.

"You sure are trying to poke the Hornet’s nest, aren’t you Arjun", he spoke, with mild amusement mixed in his voice.

"Some of the Hindu Orthodoxies will definitely protest against the new and strict Anti Segregation Law in the Constitution draft. It might even rattle the Muslim Orthodoxies, since they too have a caste system, though less pronounced.

But if that wasn’t enough, now you’re putting forward this new UCC bill. And I can pretty much guess which community will resist it the most."

Arjun smiled a little as he heard Patel’s banter.

"Well...I’m the Prime Minister of India during these difficult times, Sardar ji. Although these laws are strict and unforgiving, I’m doing it for the greater good.

It’s very similar to how blacksmiths work. They don’t shape iron with kindness, they strike, bend, and temper it until it becomes something strong. Just like that, I too need to take harsh decisions and force changes, so that a better Bharat could be forged."

Patel studied him for a long moment. Then he simply said, "I see."

But he wasn’t sure if he truly did, or if what he saw was terrifyingly brilliant or dangerously blind. After all, he had watched Arjun shape India for over a year now, with vision, force, and something else he still couldn’t name. Perhaps truth. Perhaps illusion. Or maybe both.

The UCC was ready to weave a new social fabric. Whether that fabric would hold together under the pressure of change remained to be seen.