The Supreme Court will resume hearing on legalising same sex marriage on May 9. In 2018, the court had decriminalised consensual adult gay sex. While arguing for the case on the first day of hearing, senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy said marriage is not only about dignity, but the bouquet of rights that a couple is provided.
The SC had asked the Centre on April 27 to come back with a reply on the social benefits that can be given to the same sex couple even without legal recognition of their marital status.
As the case proceeds, News18 asked Sandy, an LGBTQI+ activist who founded Mobbera Foundation in Hyderabad with his partner Anil, about his expectations from the hearing.
“It has been years that my partner has been estranged from his family due to his sexual orientation. Moreover, it was a struggle to pay for the bills as he cannot be covered under the insurance plan provided by my company. The plan covers a spouse from the opposite sex only,” said Sandy.
Health insurance will be one of the many civil rights, which will be granted if same sex marriage is legally recognised. “Yes, no one can arrest us for cohabitation anymore, but we are denied the rights which are given to heterosexual couples. This will also provide us protection against the government and the police. It’s shocking that though the conversion therapy has been banned, it’s being practised right here in Hyderabad,” Sandy explained.
He further said marriage provides right to property and adoption. “Like the heterosexual couples, we too have partnerships where one person is earning and the other is a dependent. If the earning partner dies, the dependent is left in dire straits,” he said.
Kathak artiste, curator and LGBTQIA+ activist Vaibhav Kumar Modi said elaborated on the benefit of legalising same-sex marriages under the Special Marriage Act: “We, as a society, need to get rid of the idea that we can dictate how others choose to live. The benefit of this change will be two-fold: we will focus more on self and people will end up living more authentic lives. Marriages are institutions and not mere instruments for procreation. Or at least shouldn’t be thought of so in a country with the largest population in the world. Not giving the LGBTQIA+ community the right to marry is a gross invalidation of their entire existence. If the society feels that the members of the LGBTQIA community are lesser than other citizens, then why expect equal taxes and votes from them? Is this what ‘Sabka Vikas’ (inclusive development) means? If marriage is an individual’s choice protected by law, then why is everyone so scared of LGBTQIA+ marriages? I have faith in the judiciary,” Modi said.
A drag artiste and founder of Dragvanti, Patruni Sastry, points out why queer marriages have always been part of the Indian context. The government is trying to stop same-sex marriages by trying to define men and women. “The story of Krishna marrying Aravan to become his widow is a testament that queer marriages were done not for procreation but for companionship… It’s high time we got rid of binaries like father and mother. The CJI had already asked all government institutions to be queer sensitised,” Patruni said.
Another perspective shared by a 35-year-old gay LGBT activist from Nellore, Sathya, who thinks legalisation of same-sex marriage will bring down crime against the community. “Legalisation of marriage protects couples when it comes to healthcare, property and children. If done, discrimination and stigma around homosexual persons will become low. This will also bring down incidents of abuse against the LGBTQ community. Regional language and English media should frequently publish stories around the community.”
Same sex couples have approached the Supreme Court for recognising their marriages under the Special Marriage Act.
A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud has been hearing the pleas in the matter.
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