AMID the ongoing hearing in Supreme Court on legality of same-s*x marriages, the Centre has filed a fresh affidavit with the top court urging it to make states and Union Territories a party in the matter. The Supreme Court began hearing several petitions seeking legal recognition of same-s*x marriages on Tuesday. The hearing in the matter scheduled to resume today. 

Yesterday, the Centre had argued in the court that discussion on whether legal sanctity can be given to the marriages of same-s*x couples can only be held in the legislature as it is the representative of the people. Now the Centre - in this fresh affidavit - has claimed that since issue of marriage is in the concurrent list in seventh schedule of the Indian Constitution, their opinions are necessary for adjudication, according to a report by LiveLaw.

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The fifth entry of the concurrent list, issues over which both states and Centre have jurisdiction, includes marriage, divorce, adoption, infants, minors, wills, intestacy, succession, joint families, et cetera. In the affidavit, the Centre has argued that all these issues are intrinsically linked and any change by the court in one of the issues will have a cascading effect on the others.

"Therefore, it is clear that the rights of the States, especially the right to the legislate on the subject, will be affected by any decision on the subject...various States have already legislated on the subject through delegated legislations, therefore making them a necessary and proper party to be heard in the present case," the affidavit reads.

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Further the Centre apprised the top court that it has already started consulting states and UTs to seek their opinions in the matter. However, because a judgement in the matter will have far-reaching consequences across the nation, it is necessary to make states and UTs a party in the current court proceedings, Centre argued.

As leaving out the states in the process would render the adjudication "incomplete and truncated", Centre claimed, the court should allow it to complete the consultations. Centre asked the court to give it time to record the opinions, apprehensions, and views of all states and UTs, compile them, and then place it on record in the Supreme Court.

In yesterday's session, the petitioners argued that the allowing them to legally marry will help LGBTQIA+ community to assimilate in the society, make their lives easy, and end stigma against them.

 

(With agency inputs)