A bench comprising Chief Justice G. Narendar and Justice Alok Mehra dismissed the petitioner’s arguments, stating, “The UCC does not mandate any declaration. It merely calls for individuals to register such relationships.”During the hearing, Chief Justice G. Narendar made a striking observation regarding a petition related to cohabitation. CJ questioned, “What is the secrecy? You are both living together. Your neighbour knows, society knows, and the world knows. So where is the privacy you are talking about? Are you secretly living in some secluded cave? You are living in civil society, shamelessly cohabiting without marriage. So what privacy is being violated?” During the hearing, the petitioner cited an incident from Almora where a young man was murdered simply for being in an inter-religious live-in relationship. The High Court verbally urged the petitioner to take some steps to raise awareness among the public.The division bench stated, “This case will be linked with other petitions challenging the Uniform Civil Code. If any punitive action is taken against an individual, that person may approach the court.” The bench issued notices to both the central and state governments, scheduling the next hearing for April 1.
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