There was nervous excitement as members of the LGBTQ community, their supporters, and lawyers began gathering inside the Chief Justice's court in the Supreme Court on Tuesday morning ahead of the much-anticipated judgment of the top court on the plea to legalise same-sex marriages.
Many came prepared for a celebration. An advocate's gay friend, who recently came out to his parents, had made rainbow wristbands for her and the other lawyers who argued for the petitioners in the case.
A lawyer wore bright, unicorn-themed earrings which were apt for the occasion.
The green lawns that the CJI's court overlooks were splashed with colours as members of LGBTQ community and their supporters stood there, waiting for the order to be delivered.
The moment was seen as a culmination of the campaign for the rights of the LGBTQ community which did not want to stop at decriminalisation of homosexuality and sought the same legal and social sanctity for their unions as is endowed upon heterosexual couples.
However, the excitement soon gave way to disappointment as the five-judge bench headed by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud delivered four separate judgments broadly agreeing on ending discrimination against same-sex couples but stopping short of legalising the union of homosexual couples.
Some even broke down into tears in the court. As they walked out, they expressed a range of emotions, from shock to despair to anger.
Bismaya Kumar Raulo, a gay rights activist, said he was heartbroken. "The situation for us today is the same as it was before the judgment. I am 37 years old and I still do not have the right to get married. But this is not the end of the fight for us. We will continue to campaign for our rights," he said.
Twenty-year-old Pranav Grover, a gay model who is also a content creator and a social media influencer, said he was not completely disappointed with the Supreme Court's verdict and would like to look hopefully at the next steps enlisted in the court's order. “I came out as gay after the Supreme Court's verdict in 2018 which decriminalised homosexuality. Of course, the petition to legalise same-sex unions was a culmination of the fight for equal rights for the gay community and the court's decision is not what we were hoping for. But I would like to look at the positive aspect of the judgment, which is that the state has been called upon by the court to ensure we get equal rights,” he said.
Krishanu, a gay rights activist who was part of the petition led by Rituparna Bora, was visibly angry. “This judgment does nothing for the LGBTQ community. They could have simply said we are doing nothing about this, full stop. The arguments were so well made and had so much variety in them. And they took into account precisely nothing,” he said.
“The committee that the court referred to is just a jumla. I am not going to be delusional about it. It is like asking the thieves to guard your valuables. We will definitely try though to be a part of the committee and ensure we are represented on the panel,” he said.
“It is not a very happy feeling, to be honest. I saw people leaving the court midway through the judgment, teary eyed. At the same time, I do understand the shackles that are placed by law on the Supreme Court. Achieving the rights that the gay community is demanding could take some time,” said Meera Kaura Patel, who intervened in the case on behalf of the petitioner Bobby Darling.
