SC notice to govt. on petition to outlaw Section 377

SC notice to govt. on petition to outlaw Section 377

Context:

• The Supreme Court has recently asked the government to respond to a plea to strike down the colonial Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code which criminalizes homosexuality.

Background:

• December 2013: Supreme Court dismissed the LGBT community as a negligible part of the population while virtually denying them the right of choice and sexual orientation.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra observed the following points:

• ‘Right to choice of sexual orientation’ needs to be declared as part of the fundamental right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution;
• A section of people cannot live in fear of a law which atrophies their right to choice and natural sexual inclinations;
• Societal morality changes with time and the law should change pace with life, adding that the concept of consensual sex may require more protection; and
• Individual autonomy and individual natural inclination cannot be atrophied unless the restrictions are determined as reasonable.