In a unanimous decision given by a five-judge constitutional bench, the Supreme Court of India today overruled its decision given in the 2013 case of Suresh Kumar Kaushal v. Naz Foundation which criminalized homosexuality by holding that Section 377 does not suffer from any constitutional infirmity. The Supreme Court in the historic judgment holds that discrimination among individuals founded upon their sexual orientation violates Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the constitution. The verdict comprising of four separate but concurrent judgments declares section 377 to be unconstitutional to the extent that it criminalizes consensual sexual acts between adults, whether homosexual or other sexual minorities. The section remains valid to the extent of criminalizing bestiality and non- consensual sexual acts. Reflecting on the distinction between majoritarian and constitutional morality, Chief Justice Dipak Mishra held that constitutional rights cannot be dictated by the notions of majoritarian morality. Justice Nariman addressed the pertinent issue of removing the stigma that surrounds homosexuality in the country in his judgment and urged the Central government to work towards ensuring greater social acceptance of the LGBT community. Justice Chandrachud held that the judgment is as much about recognizing the rights of the LGBT community as it was about invalidating section 377 of the code. The judgment is a giant step forward in ensuring equality amongst all the sections of the society, and by recognizing the rights of the LGBT community would accelerate the process of increasing social acceptance of sexual minorities.

An article written by Anushka Sharma