Charter Of Rights
Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code 1860, although drafted by Lord Macaulay, speaks with the coyness of Queen Victoria.
It states: “Unnatural Offences – Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal, shall be punished with imprisonment for life …”
A law directed against homosexual acts dared not use words like “buggery” or “sodomy”.
The euphemism of “carnal intercourse against the law of nature” was necessary and the Courts were required to fill in the missing spaces.
Over the years, the Courts of India confirmed that any form of sexual penetration other than vaginal intercourse between a man and a woman was “against the order of nature”.
On the second of this month, two judges of the High Court of Delhi declared that s.377 was unconstitutional.
The Chief Justice, Ajit Prakesh Shah, and Justice Muralidhar held that the law would now only apply to non-consensual acts and acts where a party to the act was younger than 18 years of age.
Continue reading "Only now is it legal to be gay in India" »
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