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

Uniform Civil Code will be implemented by 2029 in the 21 States where the Bharatiya Janata Party and the NDA are in power, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in Mumbai on Sunday (September 13, 2026). He said the government was committed to deporting every illegal immigrant from the country.

Mr. Shah, who spoke to the press, 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 everyone must express opinions in a democracy. “We want to communicate with everyone. We don’t want to run the country in an Emergency-like situation. 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 the ‘Seva Sankalp Abhiyaan’, a month-long national drive from September 17 to October 17 to celebrate Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday and the completion of his 25 years of service as a Chief Minister and as the Prime Minister.

The Congress slammed the Home Minister for evading questions on the allegations of corruption surrounding the Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank Limited ‘scam’ involving alleged financial irregularities of ₹25,000 crore through improper loan disbursals and distress sale of cooperative sugar factories.

Mr. Shah is also the Union Minister of Co-operation, and when asked whether his Ministry planned to present a white paper in the case, owing to the differences in the probe findings by the Central and the State agencies, he said, “Why should we? The agencies are doing their work. They will file a charge sheet in the court. I now request you all to limit yourselves to the topic of the 25 years of service.”

Maharashtra Congress president Harshawardhan Sapkal said the Union Minister “ran away” from the press conference as he did not have the “courage” to answer questions on the multi-crore ‘scam’.

Mr. Shah’s visit to the State comes amid differences over making functional Marathi compulsory for cab and auto drivers. He will attend the Hindi Divas celebration in Mumbai on Monday (September 14, 2026). Asked about the conflicts over language and regional identity arising from migration, he said, “It is our government’s policy to prioritise the mother tongue, and the Constitution has issued specific directives to the States in this regard. I do not believe this will become a major issue. While isolated incidents may occur if certain individuals attempt to stoke tensions, the States have experienced leadership and will certainly find a way to resolve such issues.”

The BJP enjoys the electoral support of the migrant population, particularly in financial centres like Mumbai and Pune.

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

“In terms of volume, the market for lab-grown diamonds is poised to expand to nearly 50 times the size of the current diamond market. This represents a huge opportunity. It is my appeal to you that the lab-grown diamond ecosystem should be in the control of people of Bharat.”