The Supreme Court of India rejected a set of review petitions on Thursday that challenged its October 2023 judgment on same-sex marriage. These petitions were reviewed by a new bench of judges in a private meeting, also known as “in chambers.”

This new bench included Justices B.R. Gavai, Surya Kant, B.V. Nagarathna, P.S. Narasimha, and Dipankar Datta. It was formed because Justice Sanjiv Khanna, the current Chief Justice of India, stepped aside from the case earlier in July.

Among the judges in this new bench, Justice P.S. Narasimha was the only one who was part of the original five-judge Constitution bench that delivered the October 2023 verdict. The other judges from the earlier bench, including former Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices S.K. Kaul, Ravindra Bhat, and Hima Kohli, have retired.

The October 2023 Judgment

The October 17, 2023, ruling was delivered by a 3-2 majority. The court decided not to give legal recognition to same-sex marriages or civil unions. The majority opinion stated that this issue should be decided by lawmakers in Parliament, not the judiciary.

The majority judgment, written by Justices Bhat, Kohli, and Narasimha, argued that the right to marry or form civil unions for same-sex couples is not guaranteed by the Constitution.

However, there were dissenting opinions. Former Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice S.K. Kaul supported the constitutional rights of queer individuals to form unions and even adopt children. They highlighted the need for the government to create laws that protect the rights of LGBTQIA+ individuals and criticized the exclusion of same-sex couples from existing legal protections.

This decision continues to spark discussions about the rights and recognition of LGBTQIA+ individuals in India and the role of the judiciary and Parliament in addressing these issues.

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