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Yes, you read that right! The Supreme Court has allowed for the reconsideration of the notorious Section 377 law. Time to celebrate, even if just a little bit.
On Monday, 8th January 2018, the Supreme Court of India, on the repeated petitions by NGOs, has nodded its head for reassessing the Section 377 law by a group of judges based on the constitution of the country. This might just be the silver lining that the queer community, and all of us, have been waiting for since a long, long time.
You would recall that in a big blow for human rights, in 2013, a bench of the very same Supreme Court had recriminalized sexual relationships among consenting adults of the same sex. Now it looks like we may hold some hope again.
“What is natural to one may not be natural to others,” the top court said on Monday. “A section of people or individuals who exercise their choice should never remain in a state of fear.” – Thomson Reuters
The court seems to have recognised the fact that campaigners have been stating for ages: the law conflicts with the fundamental rights of a citizen and that makes it unconstitutional in its essence.
In the same article in Thomson Reuters, Koninika Roy from the Humsafar Trust states: “We want to emphasize that we are not asking for any special rights. We are asking for constitutional rights given to any citizen in the country”. The Humsafar Trust works for the rights of the LGBT community.
In light of this development, we can only hope that the decision-makers see sense and take the correct decisions. Until then, this little occasion is for one to rejoice on for it at least gives the people of the community an opportunity to put forth their side of the problem and be more involved in a law which explicitly concerns them.
Top image via Unsplash
New Delhi, India I like to read, write, and talk. A feminist through and through, with a soft spot for chocolate. read more...
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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