UCC in all 21 NDA-ruled states by 2029: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah addresses a press conference in Mumbai on September 13, 2026. | Photo credit: PTI

The Uniform Civil Code will be implemented by 2029 in 21 states where the Bharatiya Janata Party and the NDA are in power, Home Minister Amit Shah said in Mumbai on Sunday (13. He said the government was committed to deporting every illegal immigrant from the country.

Speaking to the press, Mr. Shah refused to give a timeline for the implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Manipur. However, he said the government was discussing with allies and political parties the use of the 1951 baseline for the exercise.

Speaking about the Gen Z protests in July, he said that in a democracy everyone needs to have their say. “We want to communicate with everyone. We don’t want to run the country in an emergency. The Congress culture was different. Our culture is different,” he said.

Mr Shah, who is on a two-day visit to Maharashtra, was speaking on the occasion of ‘Seva Sankalp Abhiyaan’, a month-long national drive from September 17 to October 17 to celebrate Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday and completion of his 25 years of service as Chief Minister and Prime Minister.

The Congress criticized the home minister for dodging questions on the corruption allegations surrounding the Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank Limited “scam” involving alleged financial irregularities of ₹25,000 crore through improper loan disbursements and emergency sale of cooperative sugar mills.

Mr Shah is also the Union Minister for Cooperation and when asked if his ministry planned to present a white paper in the case, given the differences in the findings of the central and state agencies’ investigations, he said: “Why should we? The agencies are doing their job. They will file charges in court. Now I request you all to stick to the issue of 25 years of service.”

Maharashtra Congress president Harshawardhan Sapkal said the Union minister “ran away” from the press conference because he did not have the “guts” to answer questions about the multi-crore “scam”.

Mr. Shah’s visit to the state comes amid disagreements over making functional Marathi mandatory for taxi and auto drivers. On Monday (September 14, 2026), she will attend the Hindi Divas celebrations in Mumbai. When asked about conflicts over language and regional identity arising from migration, he said: “Our government policy is to give priority to the mother tongue and the Constitution has given specific guidelines to the states in this regard. I do not believe it will become a major problem. Although there may be isolated incidents if some individuals try to inflame tensions, the states have experience in leadership and will surely find a way to resolve such issues.”

The BJP enjoys electoral support from the migrant population, especially in financial centers such as Mumbai and Pune.

Presenting the 52nd India Gem and Jewelery Awards at another event, Mr Shah urged the diamond industry to take the lead in controlling the lab-grown diamond ecosystem.

“In terms of volume, the lab-grown diamond market is poised to expand to nearly 50 times the size of the current diamond market. This represents a huge opportunity. I urge you to bring the lab-grown diamond ecosystem under the control of the people of Bharat.”

Published – 13 Sep 2026 18:36 IST