Refusing to enlarge the horizon of the issue of homosexuality legalised by the Delhi high court in a landmark verdict by striking down Section 377 of the IPC to the extent it applied to gay relationships, the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a petition for making the three arms of defence forces as parties to the case reviewing the validity of the HC order of 2009.
Terming the move to rope in the defence forces into the controversy as “unnecessary”, a bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly rejected an interlocutory application (IA) for impleading the Army, Air Force and Navy as parties in the case.
“Not necessary, the IA is dismissed,” the bench said. The petition for arraigning the armed forces as parties to the case was moved by Suresh Kumar Koushal, who was one of the original petitioners before the HC.
Koushal wanted to make the defence forces as parties stating that their top brass had taken a stand “contrary” to the verdict in the context of its implications for the forces.
He had quoted the statement of former Army chief made in Chennai on July 9, 2009 that “no armed force in the world has legalised homosexuality as in an institution like Army, it can have adverse consequences.”
Another senior Army officer was quoted as saying that “any legalisation of homosexuality would adversely impact inter-personal relations in the forces”.
The then Army chief had further stated that the Army Act, Air Force Act and Navy Act though do not specifically refer to homosexuality, but it is “deemed an indecent and unnatural behaviour” and any offender is court martialled.