Amending Special Marriage Act Will Take India Back in Time: Chief Justice

The Supreme Court will issue its long-awaited ruling on the petitions requesting legal recognition for same-sex marriage today.

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, presiding over a hearing on the legalisation of same-sex marriage, said if the Special Marriage Act (SMA) is struck down, it will take the country to the "pre-independence era".

The Supreme Court will issue its long-awaited ruling on the petitions requesting legal recognition for same-sex marriage today. A five-judge bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Ravindra Bhat, Hima Kohli, and PS Narasimha emphasised that they were only considering the legal aspects of the Special Marriage Act and the Foreign Marriage Act and were not recognising non-heterosexual marriages.

"If the Special Marriage Act (SMA) is struck down, it will take the country to pre-Indpendence era. If the Court takes the second approach and reads words into the SMA, it will be taking up the role of legislature. The Court is not equipped to undertake such an exercise of reading meaning into the statute," CJI Chandrachud said.