Thaindian News

New Delhi, July 1 (IANS) A group of music lovers from various countries will join the city’s Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community Saturday evening to celebrate the second anniversary of the Delhi High Court’s landmark judgment decriminalising homosexuality.

Speaking to IANS, Mohnish Kabir Malhotra, member of the Delhi Queer Pride Committee, said: “The mood tomorrow (Saturday) evening will be celebratory as we are organising an event at Jantar Mantar where there will be programmes like singing, dancing, poetry readings and a performance by the Delhi Drum Circle.”

The Delhi Drum Circle is a group of music lovers from various countries, playing a wide assortment of musical instruments like African afuche and didgeridoo — an Australian wind instrument.

“The event will also be a platform to appeal to the Supreme Court to uphold the Delhi High Court’s decision,” he added.

In 2009, the high court decriminalised consensual sex between same sex couples, ruling that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalises gay sex among consenting adults, was a violation of fundamental rights.

July 2 has been celebrated with a lot of fanfare across the country for the last two years.

But two years on, the legal battle isn’t over with the Supreme Court yet to uphold the high court judgment.

“Tomorrow’s (Saturday) celebration will be a peaceful one and we expect around 400 people to participate,” Malhotra said.

“In the larger context, we will also celebrate the fact that same sex marriages have just been legalised in New York and the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a resolution that seeks equal rights for all, regardless of their sexual orientation — both marking significant progress for gay rights,” Malhotra told IANS.