As Delhi gears up for the upcoming assembly elections on February 5, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released the second installment of its election manifesto, promising comprehensive solutions to citizen issues and tackling misgovernance and corruption allegations against the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The manifesto, dubbed ‘sankalp patra,’ includes significant pledges such as free education from pre-school to postgraduate levels for needy students at government institutions, and a financial package comprising Rs 15,000 and travel reimbursements for young individuals taking entrance exams. Scheduled Caste students enrolled in technical and professional courses are also promised a monthly stipend of Rs 1,000.

Building on their first manifesto which targeted women voters, the BJP’s latest promises focus on the youth, with over 1.5 lakh set to benefit from a new skills training program. This release follows criticisms by AAP of the BJP’s approach, especially after the tragic incident last July where three civil service aspirants lost their lives due to flooding.

Anurag Thakur, former Union Minister, emphasized the ‘Modi ki guarantee’ assurance, stating these initiatives would be implemented swiftly if the BJP is elected. The manifesto also includes welfare measures for domestic workers and insurance schemes for auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers, who have traditionally been a strong support base for AAP.

In response, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal critiqued the BJP’s plans, particularly highlighting a clause that, according to him, would limit free education to only “eligible” children, deviating from AAP’s policy of universal free education. Kejriwal also recalled BJP’s earlier statement on discontinuing free healthcare, framing these promises as a threat to the financial stability of Delhi’s households.

The AAP’s counter-campaign warns voters that electing BJP could lead to increased living costs and bureaucratic hurdles in accessing education and healthcare, urging the electorate to consider these factors carefully. With the election results due on February 8, both parties continue to vie for public favor through promises aimed at key demographics.

In a significant step toward legal reform, the Uttarakhand Cabinet, led by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, has approved the manual for the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). The approval came during a Cabinet meeting held at the state secretariat on Monday. The dates for the rollout of the UCC will be announced soon.

This decision follows partial amendments made to the rules previously drafted for the UCC’s implementation. The amendments were thoroughly examined and finalised with input from the Law Department, with the Cabinet’s discussion focusing on the smooth execution of the law.

Post-meeting, Chief Minister Dhami expressed his satisfaction with the progress, underlining the government’s commitment to fulfilling a key electoral promise. “We had assured the people of Uttarakhand during the 2022 elections that the UCC would be implemented promptly once our government came to power. With the draft committee’s work complete, we are now closer to fulfilling that promise,” Dhami stated.

Uttarakhand’s implementation of the UCC will make it the first state in India to adopt a comprehensive civil law framework for all religious communities. The UCC aims to standardize laws in areas such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, and maintenance. While India already has a Uniform Criminal Code, a unified civil law has not existed until now.

The UCC will explicitly exclude tribal communities and prohibit practices such as ‘halala’, ‘iddat’, and ‘talaq’, which are part of Muslim Personal Law. The law itself consists of 392 sections and is divided into seven schedules. The comprehensive 750-page draft, which spans four volumes, was prepared by a five-member expert committee formed in June 2022 to examine the feasibility of introducing the UCC in Uttarakhand.

Led by Retired Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, the committee submitted the final draft to the state government on February 2, 2024. The draft received approval from the state Cabinet on February 4, followed by ratification by the state Assembly during a special session. Governor Lt. Gen Gurmit Singh (Retd) gave the green light on February 28, marking the UCC’s passage into law, a move hailed as a historic milestone in Indian legal history.

While the implementation dates are yet to be finalized, the Cabinet’s approval signals that Uttarakhand is poised to set a significant legal precedent in India.

In a significant legal development, the Supreme Court of India has granted interim relief to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi by staying the defamation proceedings against him in a Jharkhand court. The case, which dates back to 2018, revolves around allegedly derogatory remarks made by Gandhi about Union Minister Amit Shah, who was then serving as the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta passed the order while hearing a petition filed by Gandhi seeking to quash the defamation case. The court has issued notices to both the Jharkhand government and Naveen Jha, a BJP worker who had filed the complaint, directing them to submit their responses within four weeks.

In his arguments, Senior Advocate Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Rahul Gandhi, pointed out previous rulings where it was made clear that only the aggrieved party can file a criminal defamation complaint. Singhvi argued that the complaint, in this case, had been filed by a proxy third party and thus should not be entertained.

The defamation case against Gandhi had been under trial in the MP/MLA court in Chaibasa, Jharkhand. In February of the previous year, the lower court had issued a non-bailable warrant for his appearance after he failed to attend hearings. Despite Gandhi’s request for exemption from physical appearance, the court had refused to provide relief, prompting him to approach the Jharkhand High Court. However, the high court had declined to interfere in the matter, leaving Gandhi with no option but to challenge the case in the Supreme Court.

The top court’s intervention has now provided a temporary reprieve to Gandhi, with the matter scheduled to be taken up for further hearing in six weeks. This development marks an important chapter in the ongoing legal battle involving the Congress leader and the BJP.

As the case progresses, the outcome could have significant implications not only for Rahul Gandhi but also for the broader political landscape in the country, as defamation lawsuits continue to be a contentious issue in Indian politics.