New Delhi, Jan. 28 -- On Monday, Uttarakhand became the first state of free India to adopt a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), although it isn't the first to have one, since Goa has had it since Portuguese rule.

Uttarakhand's rules on civil matters such as marriage, divorce and inheritance will apply uniformly to people of all faiths, though with Scheduled Tribes exempt from the code. Among other things, the Muslim practice of polygamy is no longer allowed.

Such uniformity has been advocated by India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for decades, and the Uttarakhand experiment may be adopted in other BJP-ruled states as well.

The code has been pitched on an argument of equal rights for men and women. But what Uttarakhand has brought in sma...