Supreme Court all set to hear pleas on same-sex marriages today; all you need to know

A five-judge Supreme Court constitution bench is scheduled to hear from Tuesday a batch of petitions seeking legal validation of same-sex marriages in the country.

A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices S K Kaul, S Ravindra Bhat, P S Narasimha and Hima Kohli will commence the hearing on April 18 on the petitions which were referred to a larger bench for an authoritative pronouncement on March 13 by the CJI-led bench, saying it is "very seminal issue".

Here is all you need to know:

1. The Centre has opposed the petitions seeking legal validation for same-sex marriages, claiming they will cause "complete havoc" with the delicate balance of personal laws and accepted societal values.

2. The government submitted that despite the decriminalisation of Section 377 of the IPC, which had criminalised consensual gay sex in private, the petitioners cannot claim a fundamental right to same-sex marriage to be recognised under the laws of the country.

3. Meanwhile, the Centre also dubbed same-sex marriage as an "urban elitist" concept far removed from social ethos of the country. Questioning the maintainability of the petitions, the Centre said what is presented before this court is a mere urban elitist view for the purpose of social acceptance.

4. The Centre said the institution of marriage between two individuals of the same gender is neither recognised nor accepted in uncodified personal laws or codified statutory laws.

5. Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has also opposed the petitions saying they are an attack on the family system and in complete contravention of all personal laws. "This concept of same-sex marriage goes to attack the family system rather than making a family through this process," it said.

6. However, the Delhi Commission For Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) supported the petition saying the Centre and state governments should take steps to create public awareness that same sex family units are "normal". It said multiple studies on same-sex parenting have demonstrated that same sex couples can be good parents.

7. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has moved the Supreme Court against the legalisation of same-sex marriages. Opposing the adoption rights of same-sex couples, the child rights body has said children raised by same-sex parents may have a limited exposure to the traditional gender role models.

8. Seeking the top court's intervention in a batch of petitions, the commission has said the Hindu Marriage Act and the Juvenile Justice Act do not recognise adoption by same-sex couples.

9. The top court's five-judge Constitution bench, in a path-breaking unanimous verdict delivered on September 6, 2018, held that consensual sex among adult homosexuals or heterosexuals in private space is not a crime while striking down a part of the British-era penal law that criminalised it on the ground that it violated the constitutional right to equality and dignity.

10. The hearing and the consequential outcome will have significant ramifications for the country where common people and political parties hold divergent views on the subject.

(With PTI inputs)

Also Read: 2 dead, 14 injured as 3-storey rice mill collapses in Karnal; several workers trapped under debris