India, Asia

India is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the largest democracy in the world. It has the world's twelfth largest economy at market exchange rates and the fourth largest in purchasing power. Economic reforms have transformed it into the second fastest growing large economy; however, it still suffers from high levels of poverty.

Homosexuality in India is generally considered a taboo subject by both Indian civil society and the government. Scholars differ in their views of the position of homosexuality within India's main religious traditions. There have been arguments that homosexuality was both prevalent and accepted in ancient Hindu society. Since 2001 a major legal challenge was mounted against Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalised homosexuality. The Delhi High Court ruled in favor of decriminalisation on 2nd July 2009. This ruling had the effect of making homosexuality legal across India. However many religious and fundamentalist groups have challenged the judgement in the Supreme Court, and a final judgement from the Supreme Court is pending as of 2011.  Also see: Islam and Homosexuality. 

 

News & Reports:

 

In over 40 countries, laws against homosexuality are a lasting legacy of British rule

After scrapping a regressive 19th century law that criminalised homosexuality, India has joined the ranks of the few former colonies to abandon a lasting legacy of British rule. Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was introduced by the British in 1861, inspired by the 1553 Buggery Act that outlawed homosexuality in England. It… Read more »

India court legalises gay sex in landmark ruling

In a historic decision, India’s Supreme Court has ruled that gay sex is no longer a criminal offence. The ruling overturns a 2013 judgement that upheld a colonial-era law, known as section 377, under which gay sex is categorised as an “unnatural offence”. The court has now ruled discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation… Read more »

World’s first openly gay prince pioneers LGBT university course

India’s Manvendra Singh Gohil, who is believed to be the first openly gay prince in the world, has pioneered an LGBT+ module at Karnavati University in the western state of Gujarat. The course is reportedly the first module to focus on LGBT+ issues at a university in South Asia, according to The Times of India.… Read more »

India appoints its third transgender judge in Assam

Karachi: India’s transgender community marked another milestone in its challenging path on Saturday when Swati Bidhan Baruah was appointed as the first transgender judge in the state of Assam, Geo News reported. After taking up their new role, Judge Baruah went on to hear their first case in the Guwahati District Court (Guwahati Lok Adalat)… Read more »

Proud to be gay

A repeal of Section 377 would demonstrate that I am not a criminal but simply a normal human being. The social stigma around being gay is wrong. I told my parents I was lesbian when I was only 17 years old. They were scared for my future, concerned what people would say and worried I… Read more »

India hires trans people as bodyguards to protect women from rape

It’s a win-win situation for the trans community who need better employment opportunities A state in India has recruited the trans community to help protect women and girls living in care homes. The drastic move came after widespread reports of sexual assaults occurring at the care homes in Bihar. A shocking audit of 100 care… Read more »

Indian state takes a step forward for transgender rights

The southern Indian state of Kerala announced this month that it would reserve places for transgender students in the state’s higher education institutions, a move aimed at easing their stigmatization. The transgender community is among the most marginalized in India, with access to education and subsequently jobs mostly nonexistent, according to experts. Kerala’s move to… Read more »

Gay in India, Where Progress Has Come Only With Risk

Bilaspur, India — If you had told Ayesha Kapur 10 years ago that she would help lead the fight against one of the world’s oldest laws criminalizing gay sex, she would never have believed you. For most of her life, Ms. Kapur was afraid to ever speak of her sexuality. Growing up in New Delhi… Read more »

A 33-year-old hotelier is taking the fight for gay rights to India’s supreme court

One of India’s top hoteliers has decided to take the fight for the decriminalisation of gay sex to India’s top court. 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… Read more »

India Gets Another Chance Protecting Transgender Rights

Revised Legislation Would Secure Legal Recognition The Indian government will introduce a revised Transgender Persons Bill in the session of parliament beginning March 5. The legislation promises to enshrine the hard-fought battle for legal recognition and access to social services for India’s transgender community – rights long denied. An earlier draft of the bill, introduced… Read more »

India’s only openly gay prince discusses coming out and turning his pink palace into a centre for at-risk LGBT+ people

‘People in the community tell me their mothers have threatened to kill themselves if they are gay. They do not want their mother to jump into a well so they are pressured to get married,’ says Prince Manvendra Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil might have grown up in a vast and opulent rococo palace in prosperous… Read more »

An Analysis of the Situation of the LGBT movement in India

i. The LGBT movement in the United States was able to thrive because of the social conditions in that country. The heterosexuality of the Stonewall Riots accepted a moral and legal framework predicated on individual freedoms. The homophobia it rose against, and which the LGBT movement in the United States continues to combat, then, is… Read more »

India’s first ever gay prince is opening an LGBT centre on palace grounds

A gay Indian prince is opening an LGBT centre on the grounds of his family palace, despite his family’s disapproval. The centre, which will be named Hanumanteshwar 1927, will be based on the grounds of Prince Manvendra’s palace in the Indian state of Gujarat. ? “It is important for the LGBT community to go to… Read more »

India’s Gay Rights Activists Seize Momentum After Landmark Ruling

New Delhi — At a jammed intersection in New Delhi, a passing parade of people announced their mission with a single word in Hindi, dicing it into short, snappy syllables. “Azadi!” or freedom, the crowd chanted as drivers leaned out of their rickshaws, straining to hear. One of the marchers, Rishi Raj Vyas, 16, filled… Read more »

Hundreds join pride march in India, where gay sex is illegal

Hundreds of gay rights activists and supporters, many wearing colorful costumes and holding balloons, marched through India’s capital on Sunday in celebration but also defiance in a nation that continues to outlaw homosexual acts. As people chanted and marched to the beat of drums during New Delhi’s 10th annual Queer Pride march, many said they… Read more »

India’s Supreme Court affirms basic human rights for gay people

India’s Supreme Court has ruled that gay people have a right to live in private, putting the future of the country’s anti-gay law in doubt. Homosexuality is illegal in India under Section 377 of the penal code, which is based on outdated British colonial law. The century-old law was brought back into effect by a court… Read more »

It is one thing to tell someone to take a bold and courageous step towards the right direction, and a completely different thing to actually be able to do that in reality. Given the ever increasing LGBT community and all the awareness around about treating them equal, one would expect that the whole process of… Read more »

To reduce stigma, metro in Kerala, India hires transgender workers

One of southern India’s most popular tourist spots set an international precedent this week while also laying bare South Asia’s convoluted history with gender politics by giving 23 jobs on its new metro system to transgender people. The crew will start working at the metro’s ticket counters and on housekeeping teams in the city of… Read more »

Indian train network makes history by employing transgender workers

An initiative offering jobs to a handful of members of Kerala’s hijra community aims to tackle prejudice and bring transgender people into the mainstream They used to beg on India’s train network, but this month, for the first time, transgender women will have proper jobs, serving passengers and selling tickets in the south Indian city… Read more »

India passes ‘historic’ equality law for people with HIV or AIDS

India has passed a “historic” law ensuring equal rights for people with HIV or AIDS. The Parliament in New Delhi unanimously passed The HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Bill, which outlaws discrimination against those with HIV/AIDS. Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda called the legislation “historic,” adding that it showed the government “stands committed for… Read more »

Royal Prince of India calls for decriminalisation of homosexuality

A royal prince of India has called for the country to decriminalise homosexuality. Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil made global headlines when he came out as gay in 2007 on the Oprah Winfrey Show. He’s now campaigning for the country to end its historic anti-gay sex rules. Speaking at the Nagpur pride march, Prince Gohil said… Read more »

Gay prince Manvendra Singh Gohil is on the front line of India’s war against AIDS

New Delhi: From setting up his own charity to hanging condoms on trees, Manvendra Singh Gohil has dedicated himself to fighting the scourge of AIDS since coming out 10 years ago as India’s first openly gay royal. A member of a royal warrior clan and heir apparent to the throne of Rajpipla in deeply conservative… Read more »

Terminal Love: A gutsy gay love story from the pulsating heart of Mumbai Kindle Edition

Intro: A new gay novel about love in Mumbai, by Vicky Arora: two men separated by age, class, and religious faith, find the love they yearn for in each other. This is their true story of braving all odds through the ups and downs in their lives.  What survives is their unconditional acceptance, unwavering commitment,… Read more »

India opens first school for transgender pupils

A residential school for transgender people has been opened in the Indian city of Kochi, to help adults who dropped out of school finish their education. Transgender people can face judgement and hostility in India, and around half of them fail to complete their schooling as a result. Sahaj International is the first school of… Read more »

This gay Indian couple have made a photo book of Delhi’s LGBT community after the recriminalisation of homosexuality

The London-based artists compare India’s recriminalisation of homosexuality to ‘post-Brexit, or post-Trump’ Sunil Gupta and Charan Singh say their eyes met across the room at a HIV conference in Delhi, which they used to call home before moving to London. Sunil, in his sixties, has witnessed the shift in attitudes towards same-sex relationships in India… Read more »

India arrested hundreds last year under colonial-era anti-gay law

Hundreds of people were arrested last year under India’s Colonial era anti-gay law. Homosexuality is illegal in India under freshly-reinstated Section 377 of the penal code, originally based on outdated British law. The century-old law was brought back into effect by India’s Supreme Court in 2013, outlawing “carnal intercourse against the order of nature”. The… Read more »

Queer life undercover in South Asia

We Were Lounging on oversized floor cushions in my parents’ living room in Karachi when my friend Ali Mehdi Zaidi told me he was moving to London. The talented photographer said he couldn’t stand living as a gay man in Pakistan, where the gay scene was too focused on one-night stands, abuse, and subterfuge. He… Read more »

India’s Supreme Court refuses to hear petition against gay sex ban

India’s Supreme Court has refused to hear a petition challenging a law criminalising gay sex. India’s Supreme Court refused to hear a petition challenging Section 377, India’s penal code, which prohibits “carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal.” The court’s decision is a major setback for LGBT rights activists… Read more »

Sexual identity and behavior in an online sample of Indian men who have sex with men

Abstract Indian men who have sex with men are disproportionately impacted by HIV. While prevention efforts to date have focused on men who visit drop-in centers or physical cruising sites, little is known about men who are meeting sexual partners on virtual platforms. This paper explores issues related to sexual identity and sexual behaviors in… Read more »

See how India’s transgender community celebrated Hinduism’s biggest festival

The transgender Indian community — called hijras — have been a part of Indian society and culture since ancient times, but they remain largely on its margins, as beggars, street performers or sex workers. Although India’s Supreme Court officially recognized transgender people as a third gender in 2014, they are continuing to fight for acceptance,… Read more »

India finally has a gay marriage bureau!

An NRI has established India’s first avenue where gays can find their soulmate. The Supreme Court’s decision to criminalize homosexuality has not deferred India to have its first marriage bureau for homosexuals. An NRI has established India’s first avenue where gays can find their soulmate. The bureau will help them find the right match, both… Read more »

Dreaming of Gay Rights in Delhi

New Delhi — Danish Sheikh’s life has mirrored India’s tortuous relationship with gay rights. In 2011, when he was a young lawyer, he held a placard at the Bangalore Pride March that read: “Elizabeth Taylor had eight husbands. I just want one.” That lightheartedness was part of the spirit of a happier time. In 2009,… Read more »

India rejects bill to decriminalise gay sex… again

Politicians in India have voted down a bill that would decriminalise gay sex for the second time in three months. Activists have been battling to remove Section 377, the country’s colonial-era anti-gay law, which was reinstated by the Supreme Court in 2013. However, the cause has failed to pick up steam in Parliament, and activists… Read more »

Thousands March To Protest India’s Law Criminalizing Gay Sex

More than 7,000 people participated in Mumbai’s annual Pride March. Organized by the Queer Azaadi Mumbai collective, marchers stepped off at Tardeo’s August Kranti Maidan, a park in central Mumbai, and wound their way through the streets of Mumbai, the Times of India reported. The marchers were united in their opposition to a law that… Read more »

India’s Supreme Court Will Reexamine Law Banning Gay Sex

India’s Supreme Court announced Tuesday that it would reexamine its decision upholding a law that criminalizes gay sex. In 2009 – just days after gay activists staged Gay Pride parades in several cities for the first time – the Delhi High Court of India declared intercourse between two consenting members of the same sex legal.… Read more »

LGBTI taxi service launched in India

India’s first taxi service run by LGBT was announced in Mumbai last week. Wings Rainbow, a radio taxi service launched by Wings Travels and Humsafar Trust, hopes to empower members of the LGBT community by providing a dignified livelihood. The service is launching with three transgender women drivers and two gay men. They will undergo… Read more »

India judge: It was a ‘mistake’ to recriminalise homosexuality

A prominent former judge in India has hit out at the decision to re-criminalise homosexuality in the country. Justice Ajit Prakash Shah was serving as Chief Justice of Delhi High Court at the time of a landmark 2009 case, which led to the country’s colonial era sodomy law being thrown out. Justice Shah ruled that… Read more »

Watch: Delhi pride parade

Organisers said that while they celebrated growing acceptance of LGBT in the country they also wanted to highlight ongoing discrimination. Harsh Aggarwal, who runs a digital marketing company in New Delhi, said that there has been progress, though it has come slowly. “But it’s happening,” he said. “There are more people who are coming out… Read more »

Dhanak – A Queer Group from JNU

Dhanak – A Queer Group from JNU Yesterday at 1:21am · Edited · All we do is ‘Hullad’ – JNU wallahs at the 8th Delhi Queer Pride smile emoticon THE RAINBOW BRIGADE! ?#?pride4azadi? Delhi queer pride parade 2015 part 15 Raat ko 12 baje delhi mein hullad hua YouTube.Com Dhanak – A Queer Group from… Read more »

Gay rights activists celebrate degree of gains in India as they march in New Delhi parade

New Delhi – Hundreds of gay rights activists danced to drum beats and held colorful balloons as they marched in a parade in New Delhi on Sunday, celebrating what they call the diversity of gender and sexuality. Organizers said that while the gay pride parade celebrated the gains India’s LGBT community has made in recent… Read more »