SC Sends Same-Sex Marriage Case to 5-judge Constitution Bench

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday sent the same-sex marriage case to a five-judge Constitution bench. The next hearing of the case will be on April 18. At least four gay couples in recent months had asked the court to recognise same-sex marriages. The top court had, on January 6, clubbed and transferred to itself all such petitions pending before different high courts, including the Delhi High Court.

The petitioners pointed out that despite the decriminalisation of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, they cannot claim a fundamental right for same-sex marriage to be recognised under the laws of the country.

On Sunday, the Centre in an affidavit to the Supreme Court had repeated its earlier view that same-sex marriage is not compatible with the concept of an “Indian family unit”, which as per the Union government consists of “a husband, a wife, and children.

According to the Centre a biological man is purported 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 a father and the biological woman as mother.

The Centre said living together as partners and having sexual relationship by same sex individuals (which is decriminalised now) is not comparable with the Indian family unit concept, urging the court to reject challenges to the current legal framework lodged by LGBTQ+ couples.