DR. AMBEDKAR AND THE HINDU CODE BILL 945
attitude towards the women of our country. It is impossible to go ahead with the task of reorganisation of our country unless and until our women get the same status as man in our society and it is a patent fact that today that status is not granted to them. Unless and until the law that is there is codified and brought within the reach of the common man it will be impossible for our people to be unified.
May I in this connection refer in passing to the difficulties that we are experiencing today ? Our law has been what the British Judges in the Privy Council have interpreted till now. It is a well known fact that conflicting judgments exist on the same points. For example you can cite many contradictory rulings on either side. Apart from that the law as it exists today is only within the reach of experts, lawyers or judges and the common man does not know what the law is. Is it not good that by codifying the law and making it more rational by modifying it to the extent desirable, we may make the law within easy reach of the people ? Otherwise our progress towards unification and solidarity will be impossible.
The question before us is not whether we should codify. Even the bitterest opponents of codification have veered round to the opinion that codification is necessary. How far should we codify it, is the question. There are only three or four points which have aroused bitter controversy…….
An Hon. Member : This is not a general discussion.
Shri Raj Bahadur : It is a discussion on the points hon. Members have made that the whole Code should be made applicable to the entire nation.
Bitter controversy has raged firstly about divorce and marriage laws and secondly about inheritance. I will confine myself to these two important points. I would say that the provisions of the Bill and the latest amendments proposed by the Hon. Law Minister may be modified to a certain extent, if we find that we cannot go whole hog. But so far as the basic principle of divorce is concerned we shall have to recognise it.
I might give you an example. If a man happens to convert himself to Islam or any other religion, at the present time his wife and children are also compelled to do so. Is it not necessary that at least in such cases our women folk should be allowed to remain within the Hindu fold ? Can anybody object in principle to divorce being allowed in such cases ?