Supreme Court Rejects Pleas on Same-S*x Marriage Review

In its judgment from October 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that there is no "unqualified right" to marriage. The Court had refused to grant legal recognition to same-s*x marriages.

The Court recently dismissed petitions asking for a review of that decision. The judges found no errors in the original verdict. They said that no interference was needed.

The petitions were reviewed in chambers by a bench of five judges. These judges were BR Gavai, Surya Kant, BV Nagarathna, PS Narasimha, and Dipankar Datta. They carefully studied the original judgments made by Justices Ravindra Bhat and Hima Kohli, along with Justice PS Narasimha’s concurring opinion.

The bench explained that there was no obvious mistake in the decisions. They said the majority opinions followed the law. They stated that the review petitions should be dismissed because no changes were needed.

Earlier, the Court had refused to hear the petitions openly. In July 2024, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, now the Chief Justice of India, stepped down from the review bench.

Justice PS Narasimha was the only judge from the original bench to stay on for the review. The other judges from the original bench, including former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, retired by the time the petitions were reviewed.

In its October 2023 judgment, the Court said that marriage is a legal right only for those recognized by law. However, the Court supported the rights of the LGBTQIA++ community. It disagreed with the government’s claim that queer people are "urban or elitist."

Justice Kaul had noted that same-s*x relationships are not new. He pointed out that they have existed for emotional fulfilment, not just s*xual activity. He referred to Sufi traditions as an example. He said the Court was guided by constitutional morality, not social morality. The Court had emphasized the need to recognize such unions as a partnership based on love.