It was on the Sixth day of September 2018 where the LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual) community was elated as something momentous had happened.
The Hon'ble Apex Court by partially striking down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 decriminalized Homosexuality.
There has been a misconception among people that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was struck down as a whole and which as a matter of fact is not true!
The significance of the verdict rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court can be concluded by the statement made by Hon'ble Ms. Justice Indu Malhotra and I quote that "History owes an apology to the members of this community and their families, for the delay in providing redressal for the ignominy and ostracism that they have suffered through the centuries"
But it was only half the battle won! Although the LGBT community pan India was full of joy celebrating their win over the 200-year-old law of the British era that criminalized relationships between people of the same gender.
Half the battle that is left will be won when people will change their irrational thinking towards people of the LGBT community. It is because they still face a lot of discrimination on the ground that they are different and have different choices.
We as a society shall widen our spectrum and think rationally whilst treating everyone irrespective of their preferences with equality!
People from the LGBT community have been facing discrimination just because of their preferences, they are a human too and the law is equal for all.
Even after the Landmark judgment delivered by the Hon'ble Apex Court the people of the LGBT community still can not marry a person of the same gender, adopt children, opt for surrogacy, and last but not the least cannot serve in the Indian Armed Forces!
Too many people in India are not aware of the very idea of same-sex relationships are unknown, even alien.
In fact, rather than understanding this and accepting this, some people choose to stigmatize this which eventually leads to people suffering in silence and do not come out of their cocoons.
Despite the Apex Court's judgment, the legislative authorities in India continue to remain hostile and prejudicial towards the people of the LGBT community in several ways.
That point that I am trying to make here is that the laws are equal for all and the Constitution has guaranteed an equal status to all the citizens of India irrespective of their caste, creed, preferences, etc
But the legislature hasn't quite shown the positive intent pertaining to the people of the LGBT community and as mentioned above the people of the LGBT community can not marry any person of the same gender as theirs, they cannot adopt children, etc.
In a nutshell, the reason behind this is that there exists an enormous crevice between judicial development and legislature pertaining to the LGBT laws in India.
Although the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India through various landmark judgments has laid the groundwork to confer upon the LGBT community a bundle of basic human rights, the legislature has failed to keep up with the present-day developments.
It is pertinent to mention that the people of same-sex are now within the legal structure of the laws to cohabit without the feeling of dismay but sadly they are still denied equal treatment in all horizons.
Evolution of LGBT rights in India
Previously section 377 criminalized all acts of consensual fornication between homosexuals in the pre-independence era. The unconstitutional and arbitrary law was not only directed against homosexuals in particular but also covered all other arrangements of non-traditional fornication.
This law before the amendment was nothing but a remnant of the conventional mentality which has no subsistence in a democratic and progressing country like India.
It took 70 years and 2 long decades of the legal battle to abrade to cure the arbitrariness of a part of section 377 of the Indian Penal Code.
However, it became an instrument to exasperate and exploit people who did not comply with the conventional rules.
Even abrading section 377 hasn't been enough in securing the human rights of the people of the LGBT community.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act was enacted with an even-handed objective to protect the rights of the Transgender community by proscribing discrimination of any sort whatsoever against them with regards to ingress to the government or private establishments, occupation, healthcare, education, etc.
The Act defines a Transgender as a person whose gender does not match the gender assigned at birth which includes trans-men and trans-women, persons with intersex variations, persons with socio-cultural identities.
The Act also provides for the prohibition against discrimination, right of residence, provisions pertaining to employment, healthcare, education, etc. Certificate of Identity for a transgender person.
The Act has also recognized certain acts, which will be termed as an offence against a transgender person or persons.
The Act even provides for National Council for Transgender Persons (NCT). The function of this council will be advising the government and as well as monitoring the impact of policies, legislation, projects, etc, and will also provide redressal for grievances of the transgender community.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 came into force on the 10th Day of January 2020.
Conclusion
Although there are certain landmark judgments rendered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India which were a huge leap for the evolution of the LGBT community, still they are not treated with equality and are subjected to social stigma, violence, discrimination in most spheres of life.
Educating people about the rights of the LGBT community is paramount in nature since they have been subjected to ill-treatment for quite some time and since human rights are the rights guaranteed by the constitution of India to every citizen of India in equitability, who are we to discriminate from other human beings on various grounds.
It is high time now that LGBT rights shall be recognized and enforced as part of Human Rights. Doing so will lead to greater inclusiveness and will not only help to bring the LGBT community in the mainstream but will also help in eliminating the social stigma, discrimination, and abuse faced by the LGBT community.
DISCLAIMER: This article is purely for educational purposes and shall not be misconstrued or misinterpreted in any other manner whatsoever.
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