The Centre in a filing to the Supreme Court on Sunday stuck to its earlier stand that same-sex marriage is not compatible with the concept of a “Indian family unit”, which it said consists of “a husband, a wife, and children which necessarily presuppose a biological man as a ‘husband’, a biological woman as a ‘wife’ and the children born out of the union between the two – who are reared by the biological man as father and the biological woman as mother”.
It is asserted that the petitioners cannot assert a basic right for same-sex marriage to be recognised under national legislation, notwithstanding Section 377 of the Indian Criminal Code being decriminalised, it added.
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The Centre argued in its affidavit that having a sexual relationship with another person of the same sex (which is now decriminalised) is not comparable with the concept of the Indian family unit, urging the Supreme Court to reject challenges to the current legal system brought forth by LGBTQ+ couples. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the case on Monday.
Additionally, it claimed that registering same-sex marriages violates both personal and codified law rules, including those relating to “degrees of banned relationship,” “conditions of marriage,” and “ceremonial and ritual requirements” under personal laws governing the individuals.
“Marriage as a concept involves a relationship between two people of different sexes by necessity and necessity. This term should not be altered or modified by judicial interpretation since it is socially, culturally, and legally interwoven into the fundamental idea and concept of marriage “stated the Center.
“Marriage is a social institution from which many rights and obligations follow, thus when two people get married, they create an institution with public significance. The implications of requesting a declaration for the solemnization or registration of a marriage go beyond simple legal acknowledgement. Family matters go well beyond the simple acceptance and registration of marriages between people of the same sex “It was ad.
At least four gay couples have recently requested the court to recognise same-sex unions, setting up a judicial battle with the union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“It is a spiritual union for the execution of reciprocal responsibilities between a man and a woman among Hindus. Muslims view it as a contract, but once more, they only see it as involving a biological man and a biological woman. As a result, it will not be possible to ask this court for a writ in order to change the entire legislative policy of the nation, which is heavily influenced by social and religious standards “According to the government’s affidavit.
It is worth mentioning that – India’s Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2018, which sought to legalize same-sex marriage, was introduced in the Parliament in December 2018, but it has not yet been passed into law. The bill proposes to amend the Hindu Marriage Act, the Special Marriage Act, and the Indian Christian Marriage Act to remove the gender-specific language that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
However, there has been some progress towards recognizing the rights of the LGBTQ+ community in India. In addition to the decriminalization of homosexuality, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, was passed by the Indian Parliament to provide legal recognition and protection for transgender individuals. Additionally, some states in India have legalized same-sex unions under the name of “civil unions” or “domestic partnerships,” although these are not equivalent to marriage in terms of legal rights and protections.