Court: Supreme Court of India · Date: 6 September 2018 · Citation: (2018) 10 SCC 1
Bench: Five-Judge Bench
Case
Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India
Facts
Constitutional challenges by members of the LGBTQ+ community and others to the criminalisation of consensual adult intimacy.
Legal issues
Does Section 377 IPC survive insofar as it criminalises consensual adult same-sex relations?
Law / provisions
Articles 14, 15, 19, 21; Section 377 IPC.
Holding
Section 377 was read down — consensual sexual conduct between adults of the same sex in private is not criminal. Equality, dignity, and privacy grounds carried the judgment.
Key takeaways
- Consensual adult intimacy is protected from this colonial criminalisation.
- Dignity and privacy reshape criminal law review.
- Distinct from later marriage-recognition litigation (Supriyo).
Significance
Landmark LGBTQ+ rights judgment; decriminalisation milestone.
Primary source
https://indiankanoon.org/doc/168671544/
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Education desk note — Advocate Adesh Kumar — advadeshkumar.com
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