New Delhi: The Supreme Court, in a unanimous verdict this morning, rejected petitions seeking same-sex marriage in India and refused to tweak provisions of the Special Marriage Act.
The judges were also unanimous in giving a go ahead to a high-powered committee proposed by the Centre in May to examine the concerns of same-sex couples and moot certain corrective measures.
The matter was decided by a five-judge Constitution Bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud. All five judges agreed that there was no fundamental right for non-heterosexual couples to marry, with the majority view being that the legislature must decide on the issue of same-sex marriage.
CJI Chandrachud and Justice Sanjay Krishan Kaul said the right of same-sex couples to enter civil unions flows from Part 3 of the Constitution; however, Justices S. Ravindra Bhat, Hima Kohli and P.S. Narasimha differed.
Delivering his judgment on marriage equality, CJI Chandrachud said that the Apex Court could not strike down provisions of the Special Marriage Act or read things differently. He added that in his opinion, the Parliament should decide on the issue.
He also issued a slew of directions and guidelines to the Centre and Police forces, in order to prevent discrimination against the queer community. Following the CJI’s judgement, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul also batted for civil unions for non-heterosexual couples.
This post was published on October 17, 2023 7:36 pm