The bench will commence the hearing, two days after the Centre termed the petitions as merely reflecting “urban elitist views” and submitted a fresh application on Sunday, questioning their maintainability.
New Delhi: A five-judge bench headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI), D.Y. Chandrachud, will begin hearing a batch of petitions seeking recognition of same-sex marriage today, April 18. The batch of petitions have sought the recognition of same-sex marriages under law, arguing that the right to marry a person of one’s choice should extend to LGBTQIA+ citizens as well. The bench will also comprise Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, S Ravindra Bhat, PS Narasimha and Hima Kohli.
On March 13, the matter was referred to a larger bench for an authoritative decision by a CJI-led bench, who called it a “very seminal issue”. The proceedings will be live-streamed. The bench will commence the hearing, two days after the Centre termed the petitions as merely reflecting “urban elitist views” and submitted a fresh application on Sunday, questioning their maintainability.
Recognising same-sex marriage means rewriting entire branch of law: Centre to SC
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, had contended before the court that the right to love or right to express one’s love irrespective of gender of the other person is completely different from what the court would find the mechanism to give recognition or to give a sanctity by way of an institution called marriage.
- Mehta had stressed that freedom of choice has already been recognised by the apex court and no one was interfering with those rights, but conferring the right of marriage fell in the exclusive domain of the legislature.
- He further contended that if marriage is recognised between the same sex, the question will be of adoption, as the child would see either two men or two women as parents, and not be reared by a father and a mother.
- He added that the Parliament will then have to debate and take a call, in view of societal ethos and several other factors, whether same-sex marriage needs to be recognised.
- The Centre, in an affidavit, contended that legal validation of same-sex marriage will cause “complete havoc” with the delicate balance of personal laws in the country and in accepted societal values.
Totally unnatural and disastrous to society, Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti Opposes to same-sex marriage
The Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti too has opposed the pleas before the Supreme Court. In an intervention application, the organisation, which, it claims, represents 127 Hindu sects and works towards the welfare and the upliftment of Hinduism and ‘Vedic culture’, has submitted:
- Same-sex marriage is totally unnatural and disastrous to the society. Hindu marriage is a sacramental relationship between a biological man and a biological woman, unlike under Muslim law, where marriage is a contract, Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti said in its petition.
- “As a legal institution as well, marriage between opposite sexes has been central to the legal regime of our country. The writ petitioners are trying to destroy the very Indian concept of marriage by promoting same-sex marriage, which is going to attack the whole family system in India,” it added.
- The organisation has highlighted that marriage in Hinduism is one of the sixteen samskaras (sacraments), and as such, a biological man and a biological woman are bound by a union of marriage not only for physical and social purposes but also for spiritual advancement.
- In particular, it has been stressed that the rituals of kanyadaan (ceremonial giving away of daughter in marriage to the groom by the father of the bride) and saptapadi (circumambulation of holy fire by the bride and groom) have ‘basic’ importance in a Hindu marriage.
- The Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti has accused the petitioners in the pleas for recognition of same-sex marriage of “trying to destroy the very Indian concept of marriage, which is an institution in itself”.
- The organisation has hypothesised that the concept of same-sex marriage if it were to receive such legal sanction, would attack the whole family system in India.
- Among other things, the samiti has assailed the petitions on the ground that same-sex marriage is an import of the west. It has cautioned that same-sex relationships, which have received acceptance in Western countries, cannot be allowed in Indian society.
- The application has added, “The concept of same-sex marriage is alien to our society and it is liable to be rejected in toto.”
Arguments in favour of legalising same-sex marriages:
The Delhi Commission For Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) supported the petition saying that same-sex family units are “normal” and that the government should intervene in taking steps to encourage such family units.
“Multiple studies have argued that same-sex couples can be good parents…there are over 50 countries that allow same-sex couples to legally adopt children,” the child rights body argued.
Through the pleas, the petitioners are seeking wider constitutional entitlements based on the right to life and personal liberty, the right to dignity, and other related rights.
Last week, the Indian Psychiatric Society (IPS) came in support of the same-sex family units arguing it would promote their inclusion in society. The medical body’s stance that homosexuality is not an illness – had played a key role in the 2018 judgment that decriminalised homosexuality.
“…they are variants of normal sexuality, not deviant, and certainly not an illness…” the IPS said. LGBTQI+ spectrum should enjoy “all civil rights like education, employment, housing, income, government or military service, access to health care, property rights, marriage, adoption and survivorship benefits to name a few….any form of discrimination on these rights leads to mental health issues,” it added.
List of countries where same-sex marriages are legal
According to the Pew Research Center, 30 countries and territories have enacted national laws allowing gays and lesbians to marry, mostly in Europe and the Americas.
Costa Rica (2020), Northern Ireland (2019), Ecuador (2019), Taiwan (2019), Austria (2019), Australia (2017), Malta (2017), Germany (2017), Colombia (2016), United States (2015), Greenland (2015), Ireland (2015), Finland (2015), Luxembourg (2014), Scotland (2014), England and Wales (2013), Brazil (2013), France (2013), New Zealand (2013), Uruguay (2013), Denmark (2012), Argentina (2010), Portugal (2010), Iceland (2010), Sweden (2009), Norway (2008), South Africa (2006), Spain (2005), Canada (2005), Belgium (2003), The Netherlands (2000).