Pleas seeking legal validation of same-sex marriage reflect 'urban elitist' views: Centre to SC 

NEW DELHI: Calling same-sex marriage an “urban elitist concept”, far removed from the ethos of the country, the Central government has urged the Supreme Court to first decide the maintainability of the pleas seeking legal recognition of this form of marriage.

The Centre’s application was mentioned by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta before a bench of CJI D Y Chandrachud and Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala on Monday. Urging the bench to first consider its application wherein relief for deciding maintainability has been sought, Mehta said: “This is an application to decide a preliminary issue.”

The bench decided to consider the same on Tuesday, the day when a five-judge bench will commence hearing the batch of pleas. The bench also agreed to hear intervention applications filed by the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. 

“It would be very relevant to consider that what is presented before this Honourable court is a mere urban elitist views for the purpose of social acceptance. The competent legislature will have to take into account broader views and voice of all rural, semi-rural and urban population, views of religious denominations keeping in mind personal laws as well as and customs governing the field of marriage together with its inevitable cascading effects on several other statutes. Any further creation of rights, recognition of relationship and giving legal sanctity to such relationship can be done only by the competent legislature and not by judicial adjudication…,” the application stated.

The Centre further said the issue of maintainability goes to the root of the matter and has far-reaching complications. It has argued that the prayers in the pleas would entail the judicial creation of a social institution called marriage of a different kind contemplated under “existing law.”

Apart from the Centre, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), while opposing the pleas seeking legal recognition of same-sex marriage, has told Supreme Court that children raised by same-sex parents may have limited exposure to traditional gender role models which could impact their understanding of gender roles and gender identity.

NCPCR has said that the exposure to the children would be limited and their overall personality growth would be affected and it thus apprehends that the outcome of the pleas would have repercussions on the provision of “Prospective Adoptive Parents” under the Juvenile Justice Act. The Centre has said that the right to choice, right of choosing one’s sexual orientation and dignity attached while exercising these rights has been protected by enacting the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019

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