With Congress member Shashi Tharoor’s change.org petition adding to the chorus of voices seeking the abrogation of Section 377 of the IPC criminalizing homosexuality, it remains to be seen whether 2016 will bring some cheer for the LGBTQ community.
Section 377 has for long been argued to be discriminatory against homosexuals because it only recognizes sexual intercourse between an adult man and woman as legal while treating same-sex relationships even between consenting adults as illegitimate.
The Delhi High Court had declared Section 377 as unconstitutional in 2009 but the Supreme Court overruled the High Court verdict in December 2013 saying that Parliament should annul the law through legislation.
After the SC order was pronounced in December 2013, most political parties including the Congress, CPI(M) and TMC had then condemned the verdict and expressed their support for the rights of the LGBTQ community.
You can read our earlier story here.
This year can be crucial as the Supreme Court is all set to hear curative petitions against its 2013 verdict.
The petition to PM Narendra Modi has already got support from more than 21000 people.
Tharoor had recently introduced a Private Member’s Bill in Parliament, which was not even allowed to be introduced but is determined to continue his fight to repeal the archaic British law that was framed in 1860.
"Section 377 is a British relic, drafted in 1860 and based on outdated Victorian morals. It has no place in a modern nation like India. In amending Section 377, I am upholding the values of our Constitution. The Bill supports our constitutional freedoms - the Right to Privacy and Dignity under Article 21, the Right to Equality under Article 14, and the Right against Discrimination under Article 15," Tharoor says in his petition.