New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India refused to grant legal recognition and validation to same-sex marriage in the country with a 3:2 judgment delivered by the 5-judge bench on 17 October 2023.
However, the bench mutually agreed to establish a committee headed by cabinet secretary who will examine the rights and entitlements of persons in queer unions without bringing the same under the definition of “marriage” as per the SMA.
The historical ruling was announced by SC’s bench headed by CJI DY Chandrachud which comprised 4 other judges namely SK Kaul, SR Bhat, PS Narasimha, and Hima Kohli.
Earlier on 11th May, the concerned apex court reserved its verdict on the pleas after a continuous 10-day-long hearing on the matter. CJI DY Chandrachud, SK Kaul, SR Bhat, PS Narasimha, and Hima Kohli. were also part of the bench that was entertaining the plea regarding same-sex marriage rights.
The petition sought to establish the same marriage rights for homosexual couples as heterosexual couples. During the hearing, the petitioner’s side argued that since India is a marriage-based culture, homosexual couples popularly known as LGBTQ should be given the same marriage rights such as insurance and medical benefits, inheritance, succession decisions, adoption, maintenance, the status of “Spouse” and other surrogacy matters which heterosexual couple enjoys in the country.
