UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Thursday welcomed the landmark ruling by the Supreme Court to annul part of the Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalises consensual gay sex.
"Discrimination and prejudice are always irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary", as Chief Justice Misra says. I welcome today's decision by India's highest court #LoveWins," Guterres tweeted, quoting Chief Justice Dipak Misra's remarks.
A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Misra unanimously held Thursday that the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) community possess the same constitutional rights as other citizens of the country.
The bench termed sexual orientation as a "biological phenomenon" and "natural" and held that any discrimination on this ground was violative of the fundamental rights. The top court decriminalised part of the Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalises consensual gay sex, saying it was irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary.
UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), also welcomed the historic decision, saying criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual relations is a violation of human rights and legitimizes prejudice and violence against LGBTI people.
"Today is a day of gay pride, a day of celebration, a day when respect and dignity was finally restored in India for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people," said Michel Sidibe, Executive Director of UNAIDS.
"I applaud the brave activists, civil society organisations and community groups that have fought long and hard for this injustice to be reversed."
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