NEW DELHI ASKS COURT TO RULE ON ANTI-GAY LAW

NEW DELHI India’s government on Wednesday asked the country’s top court to rule on whether to repeal or keep a controversial law that criminalizes homosexual acts.

Government attorney Tushar Mehta asked the court to rule on the issue of consensual sexual acts between adults. He urged the justices not to widen the scope of the court decision to issues like gay marriages or adoption.

The Supreme Court is hearing petitions by activists challenging the law that makes gay sex punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

“We leave to the wisdom of the court to deal with the validity of Section 377 (of the penal code) so far as it relates to consensual sexual acts between two adults,” the Press Trust of India news agency quoted Mehta as telling the five justices hearing the issue.

The judges said the court would test the validity of the law in relation to consensual sexual acts between adults. It said if it decided to strike the law down, it would remove the ban on homosexuals from joining the defence services, contesting elections or forming associations, PTI reported.