Despite victory, LGBT people's struggle for right to marriage, adoption, inheritance "continues"

By A Representative
Calling the Supreme Court order, that criminalizing consensual same-sex conduct is unconstitutional, as a major victory for “human rights and the LGBT people’s rights to privacy and non-discrimination”, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said, LGBT people in India have suffered “widespread discrimination, sanctioned by a discriminatory law” and been “vulnerable to violence and extortion, including by the police.”
Saying that it has international significance, HRW added, “Over 70 countries, including many in the Commonwealth, still criminalize consensual same-sex relations. Kenya and Botswana, both of which inherited versions of the Indian penal code during the colonial period, currently have cases pending before their courts that would also strike down laws outlawing consensual same-sex conduct. Other countries in which courts have struck down sodomy laws in recent years include Trinidad and Tobago (2018), and Belize (2015).”
“Striking down Section 377 is a momentous step that will resonate around the world in communities that are fighting for equality,” Meenakshi Ganguly of HRW said. “But like other countries, India has significant work to do to ensure that the rights of people who have been long marginalized on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity are fully protected.”

Amnesty International said the Supreme Court ruling “marks a new era of equality for millions of people in India”, adding, “The Court’s unanimous verdict has upheld the right to equality, privacy, dignity and freedom of expression of all people regardless of their sexual orientation… Section 377 as it stood, violated basic human rights standards on equality, privacy and dignity.”
“While today’s judgement answers the constitutional invalidity of Section 377, the struggle for the rights of LGBTI people continues, including in relation to marriage, adoption or inheritance”, said Amnesty’s Asmita Basu.

Beyond the 'silent relocation' narrative in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts

By Dr. Mohammad Asaduzzaman* In recent years, a narrative has emerged from the rugged and forested terrain of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), portraying the region as the site of a “silent relocation” — a mass forced migration of Bangladesh’s non-Muslim ethnic communities into neighboring India and Myanmar.

The farmer's burden: How oil, war, and climate are rewriting the price of food

By Vikas Meshram The scorching flames of the Middle East conflict are now slowly reaching the kitchens of ordinary people. The true price of this war is paid in daily markets, vegetable shops, and in the shattered minds of farmers. Expensive crude oil, skyrocketing fertilizer prices, and rising agricultural costs are together creating the conditions for global food inflation — and this crisis is directly tied to what people eat and drink every day.

Ram, Bam and Bengal: Memories of a Left turn toward the Right

By Rajiv Shah The BJP ’s massive electoral win in West Bengal is being interpreted across political persuasions — except, of course, by the BJP itself — as the result of the alleged deletion of around 90 lakh voters from the electoral rolls during the controversial intensive revision process. This may well be true, given my own experience in Gujarat regarding the shoddy manner in which electoral revisions have often been conducted. In West Bengal, there also appeared to be a political angle to the exercise. But I am not interested in discussing that here, as enough has already appeared in the media on the subject.

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