New Delhi: While Union home minister Amit Shah has announced that the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will be brought in 21 National Democratic Alliance (NDA)-ruled states by 2029, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s two key allies – the Janata Dal (United) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) – have struck a cautious note.After falling short of a majority on its own in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and winning 240 seats, the BJP is reliant on its two allies – the JD(U) with 12 seats and TDP with 16 seats in the Lok Sabha. With sizeable Muslim populations in both Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, the two parties however, have not openly supported a call for UCC.While the TDP has said that supporting the UCC is an option, it has not openly embraced the home minister’s call.“Supporting it is an option, but as of now, there has been no discussion on it. If we feel the need to pursue it, we will certainly look into it and consult all relevant stakeholders before taking any decision,” TDP MP Lavu Krishna Devarayalu, who is also the party’s floor leader in the Lok Sabha, told The Wire.Prior to joining the NDA following the Lok Sabha elections in 2024, the TDP had opposed any move to bring in the UCC. In July 2023, Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had said that his party will stand with the Muslims on the UCC. The BJP is also facing roadblocks from its allies in Bihar with the JD(U) refusing to openly support the move before the party’s working president and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kumar Jha holds a meeting with Shah.“Our party’s working president will meet home minister Amit Shah on the UCC,” Rajeev Ranjan Prasad, JD(U) spokesperson told The Wire.Also read: Uniform Civil Code in Assam Keeps ST Women Out, Mandates Registration of Live-In RelationshipsThe statement on behalf of Jha comes after JDU(U) MLA and former minister in the state, Shyam Rajak told reporters in Patna on Monday that the party will support the UCC at the Centre but not in the state.On Tuesday, Bihar deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary reiterated that Jha will meet Shah and then the party will deliberate on any proposal for UCC. “We need to see the form in which the UCC is brought, what are its provisions. Secondly, our working national president has already stated that after reviewing the provisions, there will be direct talks with home minister Amit Shah regarding them and after that our party will hold a meeting,” he said at a press conference. “Deliberations will take place within the party, and a decision will be made thereafter. If there are any concerns from the party then we will request the home minister, but for now no one has seen the Bill,” Chaudhary added.Earlier in 2017, former Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar had written a letter to the Law Commission in which he had said that a UCC without a consensus among “the various religious groups, especially the minorities, will create a situation of social discord and lead to erosion of faith in the constitutional guarantee of freedom of religion.”Also read: CJI Says UCC Is a ‘Constitutional Ambition’, Not Religion-SpecificThe NDA’s other ally in Bihar, the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJP(RV)) which has five Lok Sabha MPs has also refused to openly support the home minister’s call. LJP(RV) chief and Union minister Chirag Paswan said that the party is committed to equality and diversity and discussions will be held after a draft is made public.“India’s social fabric is diverse. Every class has its own civic traditions and customs. The constitution itself has acknowledged this – the Fifth-Sixth Schedule, Articles 371A and 371G, and the exemptions granted to Scheduled Tribes in every code so far are proof of this,” he wrote on X.Paswan added: “My party, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), is committed to both equality and diversity. Let the draft be made public, let there be an assessment of the interests of all stakeholders, let there be extensive discussions – thereafter, after review, the party will state its position.”The Wire has also reached out to the Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) Secular MLA and Bihar minister Santosh Kumar Suman on the party’s stand. This report will be updated when a response is received.Earlier, the BJP has also faced pushback from its allies in the Northeast on bringing any UCC after the 22nd Law Commission in 2023 sought fresh views even though the 21st Law Commission in August 2018 made it clear that a UCC “is neither necessary nor desirable at this stage”.On Monday, Shah brought back focus on UCC by announcing in Mumbai that by 2029, all 21 NDA-ruled states will enforce UCC.“Our government abolished the triple talaq to ensure equal rights for Muslim women. We scrapped Article 370 without shedding a drop of blood and firing a bullet. Kashmir is an integral part of India… Some states have introduced a UCC. It is our resolve to enforce the UCC in all 21 states ruled by the BJP-led before the 2029 Lok Sabha polls,” said Shah.At present, Uttarakhand, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, have passed legislation on UCC. However, it has come into force only in Uttarakhand in 2025.