New Delhi: The Supreme Court today asked the
anti-gay rights groups, challenging legalisation of gay sex,
to furnish information regarding legal provision prevailing in
other nations on the issue and how many cases have been filed
against gay people for indulging in such acts in the country.
A bench of justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya
asked them to "broaden the canvas" while opposing the Delhi
High Court's order of decriminalising gay sex and not limit
their arguments to only carnal intercourse as the final
verdict on the issue would have wider implications.
"How many countries are there where there is such
provision (which makes gay sex criminal offence)?" the bench
asked senior advocate Amrendra Sharan, who is opposing the
high court's verdict on behalf of the Delhi Commission for
Protection of Child Right.
"Have you got the number of cases filed under Section 377
IPC in the country and how many cases lead to harassment of a
particular class (gay community)?" the bench further asked.
Section 377 referred to gay sex as criminal offence
punishable upto life imprisonment but such acts were
decriminalised by the high court in landmark verdict in 2009.
"The verdict, that would come, would have impact on other
provisions of the Indian Penal Code and would also have impact
on other laws. You have to broaden the canvas," the bench
told Sharan.
Challenging the high court's verdict, Sharan submitted
that the judgement, passed on basis of court decisions in
foreign countries, was erroneous, as India's culture is
different from their's.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, February 22, 2012, 22:09