New Delhi, April 18: Calling the same-sex marriage an “urban elitist concept” far removed from the time-tested ethos of the country, the Central government has urged the Supreme Court to first decide the maintainability of the pleas seeking legal recognition of this form of marriage.
The Centre’s application was mentioned by the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta before a bench of Chief Justice of India D. Y. Chandrachud and Justice P. S. Narasimha and Justice J. B. Pardiwala on Monday. Urging the bench to first consider its application wherein relief for deciding maintainability has been sought, Mehta said, “This is application to decide a preliminary issue”
The bench decided to consider the same on Tuesday, the day when a five-judge bench will commence hearing the batch of pleas. The bench has also agreed to hear intervention applications filed by the states of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
The Centre’s application submitted in the Supreme Court stated that it would be relevant to consider that what is presented before this Honourable Clourt is a mere urban elitist views for the purpose of social acceptance. The competent legislature will have to take into account broader views and voice of all rural, semi-rural and urban population, views of religious denominations keeping in mind personal laws as well as and customs governing the field of marriage together with its inevitable cascading effects on several other statues.
“Any further creation of rights, recognition of relationship and giving legl sanctity to such relationship can be done only by the competent legislature and not by judicial adjudication,” the application added.
The Centre further said the issue of maintainability goes to the root of the matter and has fr reaching complications. It has argued that the prayers in the pleas would entail the judicial creation of a social institution called marriage of a different kind contemplated under “existing law”.
Apart from the Centre, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, while opposing the pleas seeking legal recognition of same sex marriage, has told the Supreme Court that children raised by same-sex parents may have limited exposure to traditional gender role models which could impact their understanding of gender roles and gender identity.
EOM.
