Janjivan Bureau / New Delhi : These are the points the Supreme Court underlined while giving a landmark judgment on Thursday which decriminalised consensual gay sex.
*Homosexuality is not a mental disorder. It is a completely natural condition: SC
*SC says society cannot dictate sexual relationship between consenting adults as it a private affair
*Justice Chandrachud says denial of right to sexual orientation is akin to denial of right to privacy
*Section 377 of the IPC is violative of the right to live with dignity: SC
*SC says India is signatory of international treaties on rights of LGBT and it is obligatory to adhere to treaties
*History owes apology to LGBTQ community for denying them right and compelling them to live life of fear: Justice Indu Malhotra
*Due to Sec 377 LGBT members forced to live in hiding and as second class citizens while others enjoy right of sexual orientation: SC
*Constitution nurtures dissent as safety valve of society; we can’t change history but can pass way for better future: SC
*Members of LGBTQ community have Constitutional rights like that of other citizens, says Justice Chandrachud
*Members of LGBTQ community were targeted and exploited due to Sec 377 of the IPC, says Justice Chandrachud
*Govt, media must give wider publicity to SC judgment so that LGBTQ community doesn’t face discrimination: Justice Nariman
*SC says so far as consensual unnatural sexual act in private is concerned, it is neither harmful nor contagious to society
*SC terms sexual orientation as biological phenomenon, says any discrimination on this grounds is violative of fundamental rights
*Courts must protect dignity of an individual as right to live with dignity is recognised as fundamental right: SC
*CJI Dipak Misra, speaking for himself and Justice AM Khanwilkar, says denial of self expression is akin to inviting death
*LGBT community possesses same human and fundamental rights as other citizens, says SC
*SC says Section 377 of the IPC was weapon to harass members of LGBT community, resulting in discrimination
*Any kind of sexual activity with animals shall remain penal offence under Section 377 of the IPC: SC
*SC says other aspects of Section 377 dealing with unnatural sex with animals and children to remain in force
