The Centre on Thursday told Supreme Court that a green signal to same sex marriage in India may give people license challenge the bar on other socially unaccepted relationships including incest.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta presented a hypothetical situation to the court where a man might argue that he is attracted to his sister, claim his right of choice and challenge the taboo on incest, according to the report in NDTV.
"Kindly visualise this - from the very beginning I am attracted to those persons who are mentioned in the degree of prohibited relationships. Incest is not uncommon but it is prohibited worldwide," Mehta was quoted in the report as having said.
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"I am attracted to my sister... We are consenting adults entering into activities within privacy. And we claim our right of autonomy, right of choice... based on that, can someone not challenge that why this restriction?" he added.
“Justice Chandrachud questioned where the degrees of these prohibited relationships come from and if they are from the Hindu law. Sagothra and Sapinda- that is now codified," Mehta was quoted in the report as having said.
The judges, however, said the situation posited by the Solicitor General is "far-fetched" and that there are certain "universal rules" where the state interest in personal relationships is legitimate, said the report.
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The Centre also appeared to be under the impression that the petitioners seeking legalisation of gay marriage were arguing that sexual orientation is a matter of choice, it said.
The representative was set right by Justice Chandrachud, it stated.
"They say sexual orientation is given to me. They say that I'm entitled to my autonomy by virtue of my sexual orientation. Sexual orientation is not a matter of choice but a matter of immutable features- that's the argument," Justice Chandrachud was quoted as having said.
The Centre had earlier questioned if the court can give legal sanction to same sex marriage, arguing that it is the domain of legislature.
