Day 4 of Section 377 hearing: Supreme Court reserves judgment

#Section377: Hearing to commence soon, final day of hearing in all probability. Will be tweeting live from @barandbench.

— Murali Krishnan (@legaljournalist) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Adv. Manoj George begins submissions for intevenors. #SupremeCourt #LGBT

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George is representing two Christian organisations. #LGBT #SupremeCourt

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#Section377: In interpreting a statute, court should not add or delete words to the statute, Manoj George. #LGBT

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George taking the Court through the text of Section 377 IPC. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: It makes the following classification:

Carnal intercourse within the order of nature and Carnal intercourse against order of nature.

This is a reasonable classification with an intelligible differentia, Manoj George.

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#Section377: “If Your Lordships says there is nothing called “order of nature” with or without consent, then the entire Section will go”, submits Manoj George.

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#Section377: Consent is a word which is absolutely absent in Section 377, petitioners are saying this word has to be imported into the provision, Manoj George.

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#Section377: Original draft of IPC by Macaulay had a provision specifically dealing with consesual same sex activity and provided for lesser punishment, rebuts Justice Rohinton Nariman.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: What is “order of nature” asks Justice Rohinton Nariman.

“What is carnal? Carnal means Lust”, says Justice Chandrachud. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George concedes there should be lust even between heterosexual partners for sex. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Nariman J. points to Yogyakarta principles.

“Dont forget, we have already expanded sex to include transgenders”, Nariman J. referring to NALSA judgment of Supreme Court.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George responding on query by Nariman J. on Yogykarta principles. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: “It was an assembly of NGOs which came together to state that principles should apply to 29 countries”, Manoj George on Yogyakarta principles. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Sexual orientation by itself has not been defined either in Constitution or IPC. We cannot import it into the statute, Manoj George.

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#Section377: Justice Chandrachud referring to a footnote in application by the intervenors:

“The second website you have referred to is obviously a hate website. Look at its name”, Justice Chandrachud to Manoj George.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: CJI Dipak Misra catches hold of the name in the application

“Who is this person”, asks Misra J.

Hearing becomes animated.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Misra J. And Nariman J. all weighing in as mood becomes lighter. Manoj George continuing with his arguments.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: George relying on a study by Washinton based organisation on sexual orientation; “Idea that people are born with a sexual orientation is not supported by scientific evidence”, George quoting from the report.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: So it is not innate, the idea that they are born that way is not supported by science, Manoj George. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Manoj George now on NALSA judgment; And Justice Rohinton Nariman recalling what exactly Justice KS Radhakrishnan said in his judgment.

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#Section377: Justice Rohinton Nariman referring to how Alan Turing, the English Mathematician and computer scientist, committed suicide after he was chemically castrated. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Manoj George states words cannot be imported into statute and it is the job of Parliament to re-draft, re-draw or enact provisions. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Anything which needs to be done to 377 in the manner sought by the petitioners should be left to the Parliament, Manoj George.

The moment we are convinced there is a violation of fundamental rights, we will strike it down and not leave it to legislature, Nariman J.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: “The whole object of fundamental rights chapter is to strike down those laws which would otherwise not be struck down by majoritarian govts. We won’t wait for majoritarian govts to enact or delete”, Justice Rohinton Nariman. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George states it is not based on Victorian era morality as claimed by petitioners.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Manoj George now arguing on right to family under Yogyakarta principles.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: The entire Koushal was based on AIDS, HIV issues. The petitioners have not talked a single word about it, Manoj George.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: If anything needs to be done, it should be done by Legislature, Adv. Manoj George concludes.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Sr. Adv. KS Radhakrishnan commences arguments on behalf of another intervenor. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Gender identity and sexual orientation are not criminalised by Section 377. It criminalises certain acts and whoever commits those acts will be liable, KS Radhakrishnan.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Bench rises for lunch, arguments to resume post lunch. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Bench re-assembles after lunch, hearing resumes.

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#Section377: I have no issue with NALSA judgment, it is a perfectly fine judgment, KS Radhakrishnan. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: The observations in para 146 of Puttaswamy judgment on Section 377 were made without hearing the intervenors here and hence is a violation of principles of natural justice, K Radhakrishnan. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: K Radhkrishnan relying on a report as per which homosexuality has led to spread ofbHIV in USA.

Section 377 is a modern medical-legal necessity to counter AIDS, K Radhakrishnan.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Supreme Court raises doubts on the credibility of certain material submitted by Radhakrishnan after Menaka Guruswamy raises the issue. #LGBTQ

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#Section377: Fall out of Section 377 is family system which is the bulwark of Indian social structure since Rig Vedic times will be in shambles, K Radhakrishnan. #LGBTQ #SupremeCourt

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: If S. 377 struck down, HIV/AIDS will spread rapidly; India will lose nobility, character, virtuousness, K Radhakrishnan. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: K Radhakrishnan concludes, lawyer for Suresh Kumar Koushal commences submissions. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: We know there is corruption every where. Will we abolish police because it is corrupt? Likewise should we strike down a law because it affects a few, Suresh Kumar Koushal’s lawyer.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: After live-in relationships, rapes have increased manifold, Suresh Kumar Koushal’s lawyer. #LGBTQ

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Section 377 hearing enters last leg; Advocate Harshvir Pratap Sharma concludes submissions.

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018

#Section377: Supreme Court reserves judgment.#LGBTQ #SupremeCourt

— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 17, 2018