Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday introduced a private member’s Bill in the Lok Sabha seeking to amend Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalises sex acts commonly used by LGBTQI couples. The Indian Penal Code (Amendment) Bill 2015, which will challenge the colonial era-law, has been listed for discussion in Parliament on December 18, LiveMint reported.
While the law criminalises all non-penile-vaginal forms of sex as “unnatural” for anyone who engages in them, it is seen as particularly infringing on the rights of couples who are not heterosexual. Tharoor’s Bill seeks to decriminalise any sexual intercourse between consenting adults, regardless of sexuality or gender.
The Bill instead stresses on establishing the importance of consent during sex, and sets the age of consent at 18. It also recommends dropping the words “against the order of nature”, a questionable phrase used to justify the criminalisation of acts such as oral or anal intercourse. The draft suggests that offenders be penalised for sex without consent, or rape, rather than sex acts deemed illegal.
Section 377 has been the subject of nationwide debate as it has been used to extort sexual minorities. In 2009, the Delhi High Court read down the section, but Supreme Court overturned this verdict in 2013. The Supreme Court had said the law was constitutionally valid, but recommended that Parliament delete or amend it.
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