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India
This Week in AsiaPolitics

‘It’s a beginning’: India’s opposition parties come out in favour of same-sex civil unions ahead of election

  • The Congress Party and the Communist Party of India will include in their legislative agenda a law to recognise same-sex civil unions, if they win enough votes
  • The promise is a significant step after the Supreme Court in October declined to legalise same-sex marriages

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Supporters of the LGBTQ community and gender rights activists take part in the Chennai Rainbow Pride Parade in Chennai. Photo: EPA-EFE
Kaisar Andrabi
Two major political parties from India’s opposition coalition have declared their support for same-sex civil unions in their election manifestos, a move widely praised by the country’s LGBTQ community.
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The Congress Party, India’s oldest political party, and the Communist Party of India have both indicated that they include in their legislative agenda a law to recognise same-sex civil unions, if they win enough seats in the national elections held from April 19 to June 1.

The move is also seen as a significant step after the Supreme Court in October declined to legalise same-sex marriages, five years after it had made a landmark ruling to scrap Section 377, a colonial-era ban on gay sex. The court added that it did not have the jurisdiction to legalise LGBTQ marriages, and that the decision lay in the hands of parliament.
A member of the LGBTQ community in Mumbai watches the judgment on same-sex marriage by the Supreme Court, which declined to legalise same-sex marriages. Photo: Reuters
A member of the LGBTQ community in Mumbai watches the judgment on same-sex marriage by the Supreme Court, which declined to legalise same-sex marriages. Photo: Reuters

Attitudes towards and representations of the LGBTQ community have shifted significantly in India in recent years. A 2019 survey from the Pew Research Center found 37 per cent of respondents in India believed that homosexuality should be accepted by society, compared with just 15 per cent in 2013.

In another Pew survey published in June last year, 53 per cent of adults in India said they favoured legalising same-sex marriage.

Activists and members of the LGBTQ community in India have cheered the news.

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The political parties’ stance is a significant move towards fulfilling the rights of LGBTQ community, said Yash Sharma, 25, founder of the Official Humans of Queer community.

“It is very positive that at least they mentioned it, because Section 377 got decriminalised after the 2019 election,” he said.

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