Keshav Suri, executive director of The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group, filed a petition with the supreme court on April 23 challenging Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that criminalises a consensual relationship between consenting adults of the same sex. The court has agreed to hear his plea and has sought a response from the government. [...]
India criminalises “unnatural” sexual intercourse under Section 377. Under this law, “whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.”
Members of the LGBTQ community also face severe harassment in India’s widely conservative society. So much so that the associated taboo makes it hard for them to get equal job opportunities or pursue an open lifestyle. Indeed, homophobia costs the country billions of dollars, a 2014 World Bank report said.
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