BJP today put the ball in the government's court on the Supreme Court verdict on homosexuality, saying it will take a stand on the matter if the Manmohan Singh dispensation calls an all-party meeting and presents a proposal for amending Section 377 of IPC.
Asked for its reaction to the apex court's verdict making homosexuality illegal, BJP refused to take a categorical stand. The party also said UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi merely expressing disappointment over the verdict and expressing the hope that Parliament will address the issue are not enough.
"The Supreme Court has also said the Parliament can legislate on this issue. Government can call an all-party meeting and we will tell our view there on the issue after seeing the government proposal," Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj told reporters.
Pressed for BJP's stand on the issue, she said it is only after seeing what the government intends to do in Parliament on the issue that her party will speak out.
"A consensus should be built among all parties on the issue," she said.
Party sources maintain that BJP does not want to take a stand supporting homosexuality due to the fear of antagonising conservative voters who are said to be against it. The party feels many people in society are opposed to it and treat it as a taboo.
However, a BJP leader, preferring anonymity, maintained that the Delhi High Court judgement permitting consensual sex between two individuals of the same gender should be accepted.
"If somebody is born with this tendency it cannot be treated as being against the order of nature," the party leader said.
