The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday declined a bid to legalize gay marriage in the country, with some of the five presiding justices expressing sympathy towards petitioners.
Chief Justice D. Y. Chandrachud called being gay a “natural phenomenon” and urged the government during a two-hour ruling to make sure the “queer community is not discriminated against because of their gender identity or sexual orientation,” CNN reported.
Justice S. Ravindra Bhat said LGBTQ individuals are free to choose their partners in India but this “does not extend the right to claim any legal entitlement to any legal status for the same union or relationship.” (RELATED: Costa Rica Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage, Ending Years-Long Dispute Over Marriage Law)
India’s top court has ruled in favor of upholding LGBTQ rights, while stopping short of legally recognizing same-sex unions https://t.co/porvy2bUzb
— CNN (@CNN) October 17, 2023
The ruling political party of India, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), opposes same-sex marriage and unions, CNN reported. The vast majority of people in India are married in religious ceremonies recognized by the law through the Muslim Marriage Act and the Hindu Marriage Act, according to the BBC.
The Special Marriage Act of 1954 allows persons from different religions to marry without the need to convert to the other’s religion, the BBC reported. The LGBTQ community in India were seeking for the court to interpret the 1954 law so it covered same-sex marriage, as well.
A Pew poll from June found 43 percent of Indians oppose same-sex marriage, compared to 53 percent who are in favor of it. The results marked an increase from 37 percent of Indians favoring same-sex marriage in 2019.