India: Supreme Court Revisits “Sodomy” Law

LGBT rights activists in Mumbai, India cover themselves with a rainbow flag after the Supreme Court announced on February 2, 2016 that it would hear an appeal of its 2013 decision that upheld a discriminatory law criminalizing same-sex relations. © 2016 Reuters

Repost from Human Rights Watch

India’s Supreme Court agreed on February 2, 2016, to hear an appeal of its2013 decision that upheld a discriminatory law criminalizing same-sex relations, Human Rights Watch said today. The Indian government should file an affidavit with the court to set aside the country’s “sodomy” law and uphold the fundamental rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people.

“The Supreme Court has provided real hope to LGBT people in India by agreeing to review its 2013 ruling that favored discrimination over equal rights for all,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The Indian government should seize the opportunity and weigh in to make clear that discrimination, harassment, and other abuses of LGBT people have no place in contemporary society.”

The law, section 377 of the Indian penal code, punishes “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” with up to life in prison. The law had been struck down in 2009 by the Delhi High Court, which said the law was a violation of fundamental rights to equality, nondiscrimination, life, and personal liberty guaranteed by the Indian constitution. The court had noted how criminalization of same-sex relations had a negative impact on the lives of LGBT people. Continue Reading at Human Rights Watch.

Related Content: 

Gay prince welcomes SC decision on section 377

A Rethink on India’s Gay-Sex Law

HHS is First Federal Agency to Prohibit Discrimination in Services in Overseas Contracts

As of February 1, 2016, all foreign entities that enter into contracts with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (which includes the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) are prohibited from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the provision of services. HHS is the first of the federal agencies involved in foreign assistance to prohibit discrimination in services for LGBT populations abroad. The Council for Global Equality congratulates HHS on this first step and looks forward to other federal agencies involved in foreign assistance following this lead.

The Federal Register noted this new ruling in late 2015, but it was fully implemented throughout the agency as of February 1.