The Supreme Court (SC) of India has been analysing, as well as reviewing, a set of petitions, demanding recognition of same-sex marriage, since April 18, 2023. This is a significant development, as it is not just an issue related to the amendment of the Special Marriage Act. Instead, the Indian Judiciary has got an opportunity to think deep about the institution, called Marriage. The Apex Court is also scrutinising the possible future relationship between society and the individual in this context.

Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud, the Chief Justice of India (CJI), and four other judges have shed light on this particular issue from different angles, making it clear that the Judiciary is fully prepared to safeguard Indian Democracy. This sort of high quality review is rare even in the Indian Parliament in recent times. While discussing Deliberative Democracy, German Philosopher and Social Theorist Jürgen Habermas (b. June 18, 1929), once, gave a special emphasis on analysis of various issues by the judges for fine-tuning the democratic system. Although there is much debate about his theory, its importance is quite evident in contemporary India.

The Government of India is still not ready to recognise same-sex marriage. It has claimed that amending the Special Marriage Act is a matter for the Legislature, and not the Judiciary. The Government has immense trust not only in Parliamentarians, but also in common people in this regard. It believes that same-sex marriage is basically a demand of the urban elites, and the majority of Indians considers this institution as a faithful, exclusive and lifelong union of a man and a woman, joined in an intimate community of life and love.

It may be noted that the Bar Council of India recently claimed that more than 99.9% of Indians were unwilling to recognise same-sex marriage. It is not known how the Bar Council made such a claim, as no survey report or statistics regarding people’s view on such marriage is available in public domain. However, it is a fact that most of the Indian nationals are against the same-sex marriage. As the Government is well aware of this fact, it is eager to take the issue to the public in various ways.

Everyone would have to accept the final decision of honourable Supreme Court on same-sex marriage after the end of the ongoing review process. However, one thing to remember is that if social reforms were to be carried out on the basis of public opinion, then many ancient social evils would still be in place. The same-sex marriage is an issue of individual freedom or personal liberty. Countries, which have recognised same-sex marriage, respect the Right to Personal Liberty, and do not bother about public opinion.

Interestingly, CJI Chandrachud has mentioned that marriage is not an inanimate or static institution, but an evolving system. Those, who have omitted Charles Darwin‘s Theory of Evolution from school textbooks, do not seem to understand the essence of the CJI’s remark. Instead, they would oppose recognising same-sex marriage by saying that society is not yet ready, and would violate basic terms of individual liberty.

In case the Indian society is still not ready to accept same-sex marriage, then it is the responsibility of society to get ready. Social norms have constantly changed under the leadership of progressive people, and the majority get used to accepting that change. Perhaps, the Supreme Court shall play a lead role in changing the majority’s perception of marriage this time.

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Facebook

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Twitter

Boundless Ocean of Politics on Linkedin

Contact: kousdas@gmail.com

Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das