SC to consider in judges chamber review petition on same sex marriage

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would consider in judges chamber a plea for review of October 17, 2023 judgment, which declined to recognise same sex marriage.

Senior advocates A M Singhvi and Neeraj Kishan Kaul, for the petitioners, asked a bench led by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud to consider the batch of review petitions in open court proceedings.

"Can the review petitions, please be done in the open court, as an open court hearing," Kaul submitted before the bench.

The CJI, however, said review petitions are decided in chamber and a Constitution bench will deal with merits of the pleas.

"The review petitions, whether to be heard in open court, is also decided by judges in chamber sans lawyers," the bench told the lawyers.

The Supreme Court is scheduled to consider on Wednesday, July 10 the batch of petitions seeking review of the verdict which refused to recognise same-sex marriages.

A five-judge bench presided over by CJI D Y Chandrachud will take up the pleas in chamber.

The other four judges in the bench are Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B V Nagarathna, Hima Kohli and P S Narasimha.

Acting on a batch of pleas for recognition of same sex marriage, the Supreme Court's Constitution bench had declined to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriages.

"It is only for the Parliament and state legislatures to create such institutions and grant them legal validation," the court had said.

The court, however, had noted such couples continued to face discrimination and harassment in their daily lives, and had asked the government to act on its proposal to form a high-powered committee to expeditiously look into genuine human concerns faced by them.

In April, this year, the Centre has appointed a committee headed by Cabinet Secretary as its chairperson for taking measures by the central and state governments to ensure there is no discrimination in access to goods and services to the queer community and they do not face any threat of violence, harassment or coercion.

During the hearing in the matter last year, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had assured the court that the government will constitute such a committee chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for the purpose of defining and elucidating the scope of the entitlements of queer couples who are in unions.