Celina Jaitly, Onir Share Disappointment On Supreme Court's Verdict Against Same-Sex Marriages

In a moment that will go down in history, the Supreme Court of India refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriages in the country.

In a moment that will go down in history, the Supreme Court of India refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriages in the country.

Source : Instagram/@celinajaitlyofficial, X/@IamOnir

New Delhi: In a moment that will go down in history, the Supreme Court of India refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriages in the country. The vote was by a 3-2 majority. Four judgments and several observations were also made by the apex court. The court said it is for the Parliament to formulate legislation on it. Several activists from the LGTBQ+ community were hoping for a decision in their favour. Actor Celina Jaitly, in an interaction with India Today, shared that she was disappointed by the SC ruling. Meanwhile, filmmaker Onir also shared his disappointment with the verdict.

Celina shared that she has been an 'LGBT activist for the past 20 years'. She shared, "LGBT community is only asking for rights that every other citizen of India has"

"The marriage ruling (Supreme Court) is definitely a disappointment. Something that I have said in my journey as a LGBT activist for the past 20 years is that the LGBT community is not asking for a different subset of rights. They are only asking for rights that every other citizen of India has. The right to a marriage, a family, is the most important right that a human being can possess. So I sincerely hope that the Parliament will upgrade the special marriage act and make it gender neutral." She added.

"On a positive note, the court recorded a statement that it will remain committed to examining the rights and benefits which can be given to the queer couples. I think this is a step in the right direction. Rome wasn't built in a day."

Filmmaker Onir also shared his opinion on SC’s judgment and said, “that he was disappointed, Taking to his official X( Twitter) handle, the filmmaker wrote, "DISAAPOINTED …. The cis gendered world FAILED to be better humans."

DISAAPOINTED .... The cis gendered world FAILED to be better humans https://t.co/iMz3qOOjUi

— iamOnir (@IamOnir) October 17, 2023

The filmmaker, who has explored the same-sex relationship equation in films like 'My Brother Nikhil' and 'Pine Cone' also stated on X, "What a shame."

In an interaction with news agency ANI, he said, "I think that the Supreme Court’s verdict has come, but it has been highly disappointing because, since the beginning, a lot of positive things were discussed. The court said that the government should take this decision and support it, however, the decision has been given into the hands of the Parliament."

A 5-judge bench on Tuesday headed by chief justice of India DY Chandrachud ruled against giving constitutional validity to same-sex marriages.