SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 20 September 2025, Shift 1 · General Awareness · Question 16 of 100

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 13 September 2026.

Where this paper and its answers come from

SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. From 2025 the candidate response sheet prints every question and option as a picture, so the text here is transcribed from those pictures for this shift and checked against them independently; where the layout carries meaning, the picture is shown as well. Each answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. SSC released a tentative key for challenge and later its final one, both only to candidates behind a login, and the sheet does not say which of the two it carries. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

The Uniform Civil Code primarily seeks to replace which types of laws currently governing personal matters in India?

(a)Criminal laws
(b)Property laws
(c)Religious personal laws (e.g., Hindu Marriage Act, Muslim Personal Law)
(d)Environmental laws

Answer

Why

Correct — C. Personal laws govern marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption and maintenance, and in India they differ by religion: the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 for Hindus, Muslim personal law for Muslims, and separate laws for other communities.

A Uniform Civil Code would replace these religion-based personal laws with one civil law for all citizens → option (c).

Why the others are wrong

(a)
Criminal laws — Criminal law is already common to all. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which replaced the Indian Penal Code, applies to every citizen regardless of religion, so a UCC has nothing to unify there.
(b)
Property laws — General property law, such as the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, already applies to everyone. Inheritance does differ by religion, but it does so as part of personal law, which is option (c).
(d)
Environmental laws — Environmental laws, such as the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, apply uniformly and do not govern marriage, divorce or succession, the personal matters the stem asks about.

Concept

Article 44 of the Constitution says: 'The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India.' It sits in Part IV, the Directive Principles of State Policy.

The code would bring the family matters now governed by each community's personal law under one law. Criminal and contract law are already common to all citizens, which is why the question points at personal law.

Personal law includes inheritance of property, so a UCC would change some property rules. That is why option (b) tempts, but the category being replaced is personal law, not property law as a whole.

Key facts

Article 44 directs the State to endeavour to secure a uniform civil code for citizens throughout India.
Article 44 is a Directive Principle, and under Article 37 the Directive Principles are not enforceable by any court.
Personal laws cover marriage, divorce, succession, adoption and maintenance.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 replaced the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

Study next

Directive Principles of State Policy: Articles 36 to 51The Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code and Goa's civil codeThe Shah Bano case (1985) and the UCC debate

Common traps

Choosing property laws because a UCC would change inheritance: inheritance falls under personal law, the category being replaced.
Treating Article 44 as a Fundamental Right: it is a Directive Principle and cannot be enforced in court.

Here the UCC is tested by what it would replace. It is placed among the Directive Principles at 15 Sep 2025, 12:30, GA Q.17, and 21 Sep 2025, 09:00, GA Q.4 keys Uttarakhand as the first State to implement it.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: General Policy — all 308 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.