Mangalore: Students march in protest against SC ruling on homosexuality
Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (NM)
Mangalore, Dec 16: The Supreme Court's recent verdict on Section 377, terming homosexuality a criminal offence, evoked protest from a cluster of students in the city on Monday December 16.
The students - all dressed in black - took out a protest march from Bendore to KSR Rao Road via Balmatta, Bunts Hostel and PVS.
Most of them held placards expressing solidarity with and support to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) community and demanding their rights. "We march for a brighter India without discrimination, inequality and injustice," a media release from the students stated.
The placards read, 'Stop discrimination against homosexuals', 'Repeal 377', 'It's about humanity, not gender', 'The state has no right to enter into people's bedrooms', 'Being different is not a crime' and many more.
Organizer Kushuboo said, "We are here to make people feel uncomfortable. It's a serious issue and so we need to talk about it. The Constitution of India promises its citizens right to equality, but the verdict is unfair. We will stand with the deprived," she added.
Disha Prabhu, a student of journalism and mass communication said, "We urge the Supreme Court to overturn the verdict on Section 377."
The media release by the students further stated, "The Supreme Court judgement on Section 377 is outdated and negative. The Supreme Court of India has set aside the 2009 Delhi high court ruling that decriminalized private consensual sex between adults of the same sex...Homosexuality is a criminal office now."