India’s Supreme Court dumps ‘incomprehensible’ gay ban
Colonial-era rule criminalized sexual acts
India’s Supreme Court on Thursday struck down the nation’s 157-year-old law banning homosexual acts in a historic ruling that dismissed the British colonial-era tenet as “irrational, arbitrary and incomprehensible.”
The court found that the ban had effectively “closeted” the LGBT community, which it said has the same rights as others in Indian society.
“The court must try to protect the dignity of every individual of the soci- ety, including people from LGBT,” the ruling said. “Sexual orientation is natural, and people have no control over it.”
Chief Justice Dipak Misra said the ruling was unanimous, and all five judges wrote sections of the order that runs almost 500 pages long. Announcement of the ruling sparked an outpouring of joyous rallies across the nation.
“The repeal of this law will open the door for the larger LGBTI community, a larger discourse to ensure fundamental rights in India,” said activist Gopi Shankar Madurai. “With this ruling, everyone in India, not just the LGBTI community, will be free from fear of prosecution. ... Everyone will have their basic rights guaranteed once again for the first time in centuries.”
The ruling said the Indian constitution “nurtures dissent ... and does not impose conformity,” adding that “we cannot change history but can pave the way for a better future.”
The law had punished “intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal.” The judges ruled that sex with an animal would remain illegal.
Divya Roop, an LGBTQ activist said the ruling was a first step.
“The only thing that’s going to change is we can be assured that we won’t be counted as criminals for loving someone,” she said. “It’s not going to change much at a personal, professional or social front because ... individual mindset has to change.”