No Place to Be Gay
Same-sex relationships continue to be viewed with
prejudice, observes
The
Tribune, October 17, 2004
The Tribune House, Sector 29-C, Chandigarh, India, 160030
Phone: (91-172) 2655066, Fax: (91-172) 2651291
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20041017/women.htm#2
By Seema Sachdeva
THE recent order of the Delhi High
Court rejecting a public interest litigation filed by the Naaz Foundation, an
NGO, challenging the Constitutional validity of Section 377 of the IPC
underscores the fact that we have a long way to go before same-sex
relationships as an adult choice become acceptable.
However much we keep denying such rights, the fact
remains that there are gays and lesbians in our society who are increasingly
coming out of the closet, refusing to be marginalised. The Gay Pride parade in
Kolkata in June 2003 was a call for a right to dignity for homosexuals. The
LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) film festival, the first such to be
held in Mumbai last October, was a major step in asserting their
self-identity.
Homosexuality is more than mere sexual desire for people
of the same sex; the relationship has many other dimensions and depths,
including emotional bonding. Those in such relationships are subject to
irrational prejudices by a society that refuses to accept their sexual
preferences. Often they have to face ostracism, besides scorn and ridicule,
when they come out of the closet. The humiliating experience apart, they are
also subject to pressures to go in for straight marriages. They are seen as
‘deviants’ and even as perverts who need to be cured.
While countries like Holland, Belgium and France have
accorded legal sanction to same-sex marriages, India remains far behind, in a
social time warp. Here homosexuality is considered a form of unnatural sex,
and remains a criminal offence punishable with imprisonment up to 10 years. In
the Indian context, the issue is considered too much of a taboo to be even
discussed or debated upon. Instead, cultural extremists and vigilante groups
have launched attacks on the phenomenon and practice. Hindutva hordes have
targeted even films such as Deepa Mehta’s Fire and Karan Razdan’s
Girlfriends with a crusading zeal that betrays homophobia. It just goes to
show how intolerant we are of choices and relationships that have been
accepted by a number of developed countries.
However, since the issue will not go away merely because
the morality brigades set themselves against the phenomenon, it is time to
address the issue more seriously out of concern for the rights of fellow
humans.
The argument that ours is a conservative country and such
issues have no place in a society like ours, has no basis either in mythology,
history or even in present times. Our civilisational heritage celebrates
varied forms of sexual behaviour. India gave the world its first treatise on
love, Kamasutra, and our arts, architecture and archaeology abounds in
evidence of diverse sexual practices. Our literature too is rich with a
variety of sexual imagery. More recently, especially in the last 20 years,
homosexuals have rubbed shoulders with the high and the mighty and been
awarded and feted. One would have assumed that with so many achievers and
celebrities being publicly acclaimed regardless of their sexual orientation,
society would move towards greater acceptance.
Unfortunately, that does not seem to be happening. In the
age of individual rights, sex, like religion, ought to be an individual’s
private affair. It is a matter of personal liberty guaranteed by Article 21.
When an individual is considered mature enough to
exercise his political choice at the age of 18, denying an adult right to
choose a consenting partner of any kind does seem to be a violation of
personal liberty.
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