India creates history with decriminalising Section 377, LGBT community feels battle won, not the war
Senior advocates and jurists on Thursday welcomed the historic verdict of the Supreme Court decriminalising consensual gay sex between adults, saying everyone has the right to live a dignified life with equality. A five judge SC bench took an unanimous decision by decriminalising Section 377 making gay sex legal which made the whole country proud. CJI Deepak Misra and Justice AM Khanwilkar stated that consensual sexual relationship between two adults does not fall under the act of Section 377.
Bikram, LGBT activist from Chandigarh said, "I am glad that the government heard us, but I want that people should also accept us in the same way the government has accepted us. It took some time to achieve this but, at the end I'm happy that it happened. Just waiting for the people to accept it with the same fervour that we are celebrating it."
LGBT activists cried tears of joy as the whole country on Thursday prepared to bid adieu the criminalisation of LGBT under Section 377. Dhananjay Chauhan, the first transgender student of Panjab University seemed equally enthralled, "I would like to congratulate the LGBT community as we won the battle of equality in Supreme Court today. Now that the 377 is gone, we can breathe in relief till the people come to accept it."
Renu Mathur, a social activist and grief counselor in Tricity, says, "Sustenance of identity is the pyramid of life, observed as said by CJI Misra is definitely true. Finally, Section 377 is decriminalised by the Supreme Court Constitution which further gives the right to live and to love. Its time, we as human beings learn to respect other perspectives
And before the “ Internet Experts” begin, I would like to say that the most rape perpetrators are heterosexuals."
(Inputs by Manokriti Bedi)