New Delhi: After refusing to grant legal recognition to same-sex couples in October, the Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to consider on November 28 a bundle of petitions seeking a reconsideration of its judgment, which only Parliament and state legislatures can validate the marital union of same-sex couples.
Senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, requesting the CJI to ensure that the review petition comes up for consideration before five judges on November 28 – the tentative date assigned by the court registry. Several other lawyers, who had earlier appeared in the matter, were also in attendance when Rohatgi made the request.
“We have also sought an open court hearing. It is tentatively listed on November 28. Let it not be deleted. Apart from this, majority or minority, both views have held that there is a discrimination (against LGBTQ+ couples). If there is discrimination, there also has to be a remedy. This is why we have pressed for an open court hearing,” Rohatgi submitted, according to news reports.
Of the five judges on the same-sex marriage bench, Justice S Ravindra Bhat retired on October 20. This means the CJI will have to add a new judge to the bench to consider the review petitions. It is for the CJI, as the master of the roster, to assign a date for considering the review plea inside judges’ chambers.
Almost a week later, Supriya Chakravarty and Abhay Dang also moved the top court seeking a review of the October 17 judgment. They argued that constitutional courts are empowered to review statutory law to ensure its conformity with constitutional values and that such courts do not need to wait for the legislature to enact or amend laws to recognise same-sex marriage.
