The strongest opposition to decriminalising homosexuality in India was on the grounds of being it against Indian culture. The Kamasutra mentions physical pleasure in male-male unions in vivid detail. Bhakti saints in mediaeval India effeminized themselves to worship Lord Krishna or Lord Shiva. Many such practices existed but weren’t practised widely. It was also never looked down upon. In ancient India, lines dividing male from female and heterosexuals from homosexuals were blurred. Masculinity and femininity and the only labels that are applied to the body are being occupied by eternal souls. India has stories of Narad falling into a pond and emerging from it as a woman. Another story tells of Shiva bedding in the Yamuna to become a woman and dance with Krishna. In the Kritivas Ramayan, there are stories where two woman makes love to each other. In the Bhagwad Gita Krishna asks Arjuna to not be arrogant. He says that there is much more to the Universe than the human mind can fathom. As there is nothing unnatural in nature and every way if being is the manifestation of the divine.
So when did it become a crime? It began to be viewed as a criminal offence when Thomas Macaulay introduced section 377 in the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Mainly colonialism brought so many changes in India. India’s openness to sexuality became one of the reasons for classifying India as backwards. Every individual has the right to do whatever they want to do with their body. It’s their preference. Homosexuality doesn’t cause any harm to anybody. Some arguments say that it’s not natural as it is not helpful in reproduction. Sexuality is a choice and has nothing to do with reproduction. Everyone doesn’t need to reproduce. Love is love and it can’t be a punishable offence. The LGBTQAI+ community still lags behind all the taboos and social unacceptance. It needs to be addressed until it’s normalised. Homosexual terms like “lesbian”, “gay”, “hijra” are used as cuss words as if it’s something discriminatory against nature. If a person supports LGBTQ rights is seen to be a part of their community but they don’t realise the person could be just an ally. The way India views this community needs to be altered.