December 15, 2013
NEW DELHI: BJP has decided to oppose any move to nullify Supreme Court's order re-criminalizing consensual sex among consenting adults, dealing a huge setback to any move to scrap or dilute Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
December 15, 2013
NEW DELHI: BJP has decided to oppose any move to nullify Supreme Court's order re-criminalizing consensual sex among consenting adults, dealing a huge setback to any move to scrap or dilute Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
"Gay sex is not natural and we cannot support something which is unnatural," said BJP chief Rajnath Singh putting an end to his party's equivocation over the issue which had held out the hope that the principal opposition may not hinder government's plan to organize relief for the LGBT community in the aftermath of SC's controversial order last Wednesday.
Elaborating on his opposition to the government's plan to render the SC verdict ineffective, Singh said, "Usually we would not take a stand against SC verdicts and so we don't want to oppose the SC verdict in this instance either. It is for the government to come up with a proposal in case they want to challenge the order."
The stand of the principal opposition spells a presents a huge obstacle for government's efforts to get the gay sex de-criminalized again. Given that regional parties like Samajwadi Party and Trinamool Congress are either opposed or indifferent to the move to repeal or dilute Section 377, BJP's stand significantly shrinks the possible support for the government and may force it to take the legal route to oppose the SC order.
Government was conflicted about taking the legal route because it can be time-consuming, thus hindering the effort to give relief to the LGBT community.
Sources close to Singh said the BJP chief's statement was a well thought out move. They said that he was not impressed by the argument that gay sex should be allowed as long as it is among consenting adults. "By that yardstick, we should be allowing prostitution also because it also represents consent among adults," said a source close to the BJP chief.
The source also said that Singh was of the opinion that the government should think twice before challenging the SC order. "It does not involve a policy matter. It is about criminal procedure: something which courts are better equipped to deal with. The judges must have examined the issue in its entire complexity," said a source in what marked BJP's disagreement with criticism of the SC order.
Courtesy: TNN
