NEW DELHI: With just four days to go for the Centre to file its affidavit on the question of same-sex marriage, former Bihar deputy chief minister and BJP’s Rajya Sabha member Sushil Kumar Modi on Monday urged the government not to accord legal sanction to it.
Raising the matter during Zero House, he claimed the same-sex marriage was against the cultural and social ethos of the country and if allowed, it will “play havoc with the delicate balance of personal laws”.
On November 25, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud issued notice to the Centre to respond in four weeks on two petitions filed by gay couples seeking recognition to same-sex marriage. They had cited an SC verdict in the Puttaswamy case, which held that LGBTQ+ persons enjoy the right to equality, dignity and privacy guaranteed by the Constitution on the same footing as all other citizens.
However, Sushil Modi said, “Within India same-sex marriage is neither recognised nor accepted by any uncodified personal laws and codified statutes governing the institution of marriage. It would cause complete havoc, upsetting the delicate balance of personal laws in the country.”
Blaming certain Left-liberal people and activists for making efforts to get legal sanctity for same-sex marriage, he argued that the matter ought to be deliberated in Parliament and in society instead of allowing the judiciary take the call.