The legal recognition of same-sex marriage in India is currently being discussed in a batch of petitions which will be heard by a constitution bench of the Supreme Court on April 27.
The hearing on the petition for marriage equality in India continued in the Supreme Court for the fifth day on 26 April. At least 15 petitions were being heard. The Center urged the apex court to let Parliament deal with the questions raised in the petitions which seek legal sanction for same-sex marriages.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the Center and expressed that the matter was a “very complex subject” which had “deep social implications”. A five-judge constitution bench was headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud.
Watch live updates here.
Center will present its arguments today
After the conclusion of the petitioners’ arguments on Wednesday, the Center will present its arguments on same-sex marriage before the Supreme Court on April 27. The Centre’s case was presented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who urged the court to leave the matter to Parliament.
Mehta highlighted that, whenever the legislature intervened in this matter, they made similar amendments in other laws. Furthermore, he said that none of the affected statutes had been challenged in this case, indicating that the court could not do what Parliament could.
‘Court cannot handle such complex issues’
All District Courts Bar Associations of Delhi’s Coordination Committee joined the Council of India for the first time in expressing their dissatisfaction over the hearing of a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on recognition of same-sex marriages. While the role of the Supreme Court in upholding the rule of law is important, bar associations said there are some complex issues with important consequences which cannot be left to the discretion of the courts alone.
‘Not the responsibility of the center’
According to Maneka Guruswamy, the constitution was given to the people themselves, and thus it is not the responsibility of the central government to bring the matter to Parliament.
‘Forced Conversion Treatment’
Advocate Vrinda Grover earlier drew attention to the issue of “forced conversion treatment” being imposed on transgender persons who had returned to their families during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.
The petitioners sought the ‘blessings’ of the Union of India
The Supreme Court on April 26 heard the fifth day of arguments in the same-sex marriage case. The petitioners sought the “blessings” of the Union of India, but Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the central government, said their prayer was “vague”. He cited “social acceptance” as a requirement for recognizing a union and said it had to be done through Parliament.
download
The app will get unlimited access to Mint Premium for 14 days absolutely FREE!