LI Network
Published on: December 30, 2023 at 13:01 IST
Retired Supreme Court Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, part of the bench rejecting legal approval for same-sex marriage, clarified that the case wasn’t purely legal but had societal implications. He suggested the government might introduce a law in the future to grant matrimonial rights to gay couples.
Justice Kaul, who concluded his tenure on December 25 after over six years in the apex court, expressed that although the court’s decision delayed the goal for the queer community, societal changes could drive legal amendments.
“These are societal issues. Society sometimes takes longer to accept changes… Laws evolve with societal shifts. Maybe the government will consider this and bring forth appropriate legislation,” he conveyed in an interview with PTI.
On October 17, a five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court declined to legally recognize same-sex marriage but acknowledged equal rights and protections for queer individuals. While the majority opinion didn’t support marriage rights, a minority view by CJI D Y Chandrachud and Justice Kaul recognized the right of same-sex couples to enter into civil unions.
Reflecting on this, Justice Kaul mentioned that achieving success in such matters might not happen immediately.
He compared it to the extended process in decriminalizing consensual gay sex under the Indian Penal Code.
He emphasized that the recent verdict’s majority opinion was relevant for the current period and anticipated shifts in societal perspectives in the future.
