NCP MP Supriya Sule introduces bill in Parl on legalising same-sex marriage
NCP MP Supriya Sule's bill also sought same legal rights to married LGBTQIA couples that heterosexual couples are entitled to. Another private member bill was introduced by a DMK MP that talked about providing rights to members of the LGBTQIA community for a life with dignity.
Supriya Sule, a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP on Friday introduced a private member bill in the Lok Sabha seeking legalising of same-sex marriage and providing same legal rights to married LGBTQIA couples that heterosexual couples were entitled to.
Another private member bill was also introduced by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP DNV Senthilkumar S that talked about providing rights to members of the LGBTQIA community to enable them to live with dignity.
The bill introduced by Sule, a parliamentarian from Maharashtra, proposed to amend the Special Marriage Act, 1954, to solemnise such marriages and fix the age of marriage at 21 years in case both parties were men and 18 years in case both were women. It also proposed to replace the words husband and wife with spouse by amending the various sections of the Act.
In the statement of 'Objects and Reasons' of the bill, Sule said lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (questioning), intersex, and agender (LGBTQIA) individuals still faced "persecution, discrimination and social stigma within society".
In 2018, the Supreme Court of India had struck down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that decriminalised homosexuality.
Citing another Supreme Court judgement, Sule said even after the determination of their sexual orientation, "LGBTQIA individuals are still unable to marry and raise their own families".
Stating that LGBTQIA couples had no access to rights that heterosexual couples were entitled to upon marriage, such as succession, maintenance and pensions, etc, she said, "Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to amend the Special Marriage Act, 1954, to legalise same-sex marriage, and provide legal recognition to married LGBTQIA couples."
It will ensure that Article 14 and Article 21 of the Constitution were upheld, and that LGBTQIA couples were provided the rights they are entitled to, she said.
(With inputs from agencies)
Recommended Topics