India's Supreme Court on Monday ordered
a review of its decision upholding a law that criminalizes gay sex
with up to ten years in prison.
In 2009 – just days after gay
activists staged Gay Pride parades in several cities for the first
time – the Delhi High Court of India declared intercourse between
two consenting members of the same sex legal.
The verdict overturned a law that
banned gay sex in India, a holdover from British colonial rule, known
as Section 377 of India's penal code.
In 2013, the Supreme Court threw out
the lower court's ruling, saying that only lawmakers could change
Section 377.
Five Indians filed a petition, arguing
that the law leaves then in constant fear of being prosecuted.
“A section of people or individuals
who exercise their choice should never remain in a state of fear,”
the justices said. “What is natural to one may not be natural to
others.”
LGBT rights advocate Aditya
Bondyopadhyay told The
Guardian: “There has been so much criticism of the
judgment, and mobilization on the ground and acceptance levels have
gone up by a lot, [despite] the conservative forces in the ruling
party.”
(Related: Hundreds
celebrate LGBT Pride in India.)