IPC's Section 377: Supreme Court to hear plea for relook on verdict on gay sex today

February 2, 2016

New Delhi, Feb 2: The Supreme Court on Tuesday will hold an open court hearing of the curative petition by NGO Naz Foundation seeking relook at its verdict upholding the validity of Indian Penal Code's section 377 criminalising gay sex.

gaysex

A bench of three seniormost judges - Chief Justice T.S. Thakur, Justice Anil R. Dave and Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar - would hold the open court of the issue that caused flutters both in legal circles and amongst gay rights activitsts after top court by its December 12, 2013 upheld the validity of section 377.

The apex court by its order of December 12, 2013 and subsequently in the review petition on January 28, 2014, upheld the validity of section 377, finding no constitutional infirmity in the penal provision that criminalises homosexuality.

Upholding the validity of section 377, the court had set aside the Delhi High Court verdict of July 2, 2009 by which it had read down section 377 and decriminalising consensual sex between the adults of same gender.

The then bench of Chief Justice P.Sathasivam, Justice R.M.Lodha, Justice H.L.Dattu and Justice S.J.Mukhopadhaya (all retired since then) had on April 3, 2014, directed the hearing of the curative petition in open court after they considered the plea by Naz Foundation in their chambers.

The NGO had moved the Supreme Court seeking to cure "gross miscarriage of justice" in its judgment upholding the validity of section 377. It had contended that 2013 amendment to section 375, which deals with rape, had held consensual sex between an adult male and woman was not an offence.

The curative petition had said that by implication, such sexual acts between man and woman, which are consensual, are no longer prohibited.

Consequently, these consensual acts between man and woman have been taken out of the ambit of section 377, otherwise the amended Section 375 would be rendered redundant, it contended, adding that section 377 now effectively only criminalises all forms of penetrative sex, including, penile-anal sex and penile oral sex, which makes it ex facie discriminatory against homosexual men and transgender persons and thus violative of article 14 of the constitution.

It had said that the amendments to section 375 were carried out after the judgment in the gay sex case was reserved and the parties did not have a chance to address the court on the issue, and the court ought to have heard the parties on the effect of the amendments to section 375 on Section 377.

The curative petition said that court had erred in upholding the classification between carnal intercourse in the ordinary course of nature and carnal intercourse against the order of nature under section 377, without recording a finding on the carnal intercourse against the order of nature. And whether there is a rational nexus with the object of legislation on this count.

The impugned judgment, it said, "reflects an issue bias against the LGBT persons, as evident from such observations like "the so-called rights of LGBT persons" and "miniscule fraction of the country's population" which vitiates the judgment and renders it a nullity.

Comments

TR
 - 
Tuesday, 2 Feb 2016

This is the period nearing end of the world, where BAD will over take up on GOOD. LIES and DECEPTION will over take TRUTH.

MAY ALLAH SUBHANAHU save us from the company of such People.

PONDER
 - 
Tuesday, 2 Feb 2016

Prophet Lut lived at the same time as Prophet Ibrahim. The old testament says that LUT (AS) was Prophet Ibrahim's nephew and that they traveled some distance together in Ibrahim's long journeys. Lut was sent as a messenger to one of the Ibrahim's neighboring communities. These people as QURAN tells us, practiced a perversion unknown to the world up to then Namely SODOMY. When LUT told them to give up this Perversion and brought them ALLAH's warning THEY DENIED HIM. refused his prophethood and carried on with their DESIRE. In the END people were destroyed by a DREADFUL DISASTER.
The QURAN: (26 :161 - 174)
When their brother LUT said to them \Will YOU not fear ALLAH\"?
Indeed, Im to YOU a trustworthy Messenger.
So fear ALLAH and obey me
And I do not ask for it any PAYMENT. My payment is only from the lord of the worlds.
DO YOU approach MALES among the worlds
And leave what YOUR LORD has created for YOU as MATES? But YOU (GaY) are a people TRANSGRESSING.\"
They said \"If you do not desist, O LUT, YOu wil surely be of those evicted.\"
He Said \"Indeed I'm toward your deed, of those who detest (it)
My Lord, save me and my family from (the consequence of) WHAT THEY DO\"
So We (ALLAH) saved him and his family, all,
Except an old women those who remained behind.
Then We destroyed the others.
And we rained upon them a rain (of stones) and evil was the rain of those who were WARNED.
Indeed in that is a SIGN, but MOST of them were not to be BELIEVERS>"

AK
 - 
Tuesday, 2 Feb 2016

I hope india will not fall for such dirty acts & follow the evils agenda which is injected from america.
Ya ALLAH save us from this evil act becoming legal.

AK
 - 
Tuesday, 2 Feb 2016

I hope india will not fall for such dirty acts & follow the evils agenda which is injected from america.
Ya ALLAH save us from this evil act becoming legal.

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News Network
March 26,2020

Panaji, Mar 26: Three persons, all with travel history abroad, tested positive for coronavirus in Goa on Wednesday, health department officials said, as the tourist haven joined the states which have reported COVID-19 cases.

This is the first time the tourist state has reported coronavirus positive cases.

The Directorate of Health Services, in a late night press statement here, said three suspected cases of COVID-19 from Goa, whose test results were awaited, have turned out positive.

All three are male patients of ages 25, 29 and 55 years. They have travel history of returning to Goa from Spain, Australia and the USA, respectively, the officials said.

The condition of the trio, admitted in Goa Medical College and Hospital near here, is stable, the officials added.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the state is providing the best healthcare facility to the diagnosed patients.

I have been informed by the state Directorate of Health services that three individuals have been tested positive for #COVID19 in Goa.

"We are providing the best healthcare facility to the diagnosed patients, he said.

Their condition is stable at present. e have also traced their contacts and are quarantining them, Sawant added.

Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said the government is taking all precautions and following guidelines related to the viral infection.

In view of the three positive coronavirus cases in Goa, we are following all guidelines laid down by the central government and taking all precautions with the support of chief minister Pramod Sawant, he said.

Our testing facility will be up and running in the next two days. Our team of doctors is doing its est to make sure we contain the spread of virus in the state, Rane added.

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News Network
June 13,2020

Visakhapatnam, Jun 13: A four-month-old baby who was on ventilator treatment for 18 days for COVID-19 was on Friday evening discharged from hospital after testing negative.

"A tribal woman of East Godavari named Laxmi was infected with COVID-19 in May, later the doctors confirmed that her four-month-old baby was also infected," said District Collector, Vinay Chand.

"The baby was shifted to Visakhapatnam VIMS hospital on May 25. She was treated for 18 days on a ventilator. Doctors again conducted baby's COVID-19 test recently, following which the reports came negative. After a health check-up, VIMS doctors discharged the baby on Friday evening," he added.

Meanwhile, 14 new COVID-19 positive cases have been reported in Visakhapatnam district on Friday, taking the total number of cases to 252 including one fatality due to the virus.

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News Network
May 21,2020

United Nations, May 21: At least 19 million children in parts of Bangladesh and India are at "imminent risk" from flash flooding and heavy rain as Cyclone Amphan makes landfall and the state of West Bengal is expected to take a direct hit from the powerful storm, the UN's children agency has warned.

The extremely severe cyclonic storm Amphan made a landfall at Digha in West Bengal and Bangladesh on Wednesday, leaving a trail of destruction. At least three persons were killed in India and seven in Bangladesh.

The UNICEF said that at least 19 million children in parts of Bangladesh and India are at “imminent risk from flash flooding, storm surges and heavy rain as Cyclone Amphan makes landfall.”

West Bengal, “home to more than 50 million people, including over 16 million children, is expected to take a direct hit from the powerful storm,” the UN agency said in a statement on Wednesday.

The UNICEF said it is also very concerned that the COVID-19 could deepen the humanitarian consequences of Cyclone Amphan in both the countries. Evacuees who have moved to crowded temporary shelters would be especially vulnerable to the spread of respiratory diseases like COVID-19, as well as other infections.

“We continue to monitor the situation closely,” said UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia Jean Gough.

“The safety of children and their families in the areas that will be impacted is a priority and it is good to see that the authorities have planned their urgent response factoring in the on-going COVID-19 pandemic.”

Across the region, the UNICEF is “working closely with the governments of Bangladesh and India and stands ready to support humanitarian operations to reach children and families affected by Cyclone Amphan.”

Based on the storm’s current trajectory, Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh – now sheltering over 850,000 Rohingya refugees – is likely to experience high winds and heavy rains which may cause damage to homes and shelters in the refugee camps and Bangladeshi communities. This population is already highly vulnerable and cases of COVID-19 have recently been confirmed in the camps and host communities.

The UNICEF said it is working with the Deputy Commissioner’s Office in Cox’s Bazar, the Office of the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner, and humanitarian partners to help ensure Bangladeshi and Rohingya children and families remain protected.

These efforts include raising awareness among Rohingya and Bangladeshi communities on cyclone preparedness and prepositioning emergency life-saving water, sanitation, hygiene and medical supplies to meet immediate humanitarian needs.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said at the daily press briefing that UN teams on the ground continue to work with the Government of Bangladesh to prepare and support those in need in the wake of the cyclone.

“Given the current pandemic, this support includes distributing personal protective equipment, disinfectants and other materials to evacuation shelters. To reduce the person-to-person contact during the delivery of aid, e-cash distributions will be used,” he said adding that the UN along with its partners is mobilising more than 1,700 mobile health teams and preparing for emergency food deliveries.

“The Super Cyclone is taking a westerly trajectory towards India, but nearly 8 million people in Bangladesh remain at risk,” he said adding that the Bangladesh government has evacuated more than 2 million people in high-risk areas. 

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