Is legalizing gay sex, all enough to celebrate queer freedom in India?
India is celebrating its 75th year of Independence after struggling with 200 years of British colonization and Indians successfully managed to hit the norms of the Modern Indian era. But is that independence, giving quite a freedom to its citizens? Do people in India truly celebrate their freedom regardless of class, caste, creed, religion, region, stature, etceteras? Can the modern Indian scenario ever be improved in terms of flexibility, feasibility, and accessibility for queer people?
Needless to say, the queer scenario in India has been getting constantly progressive for decades even though the queer community consistently faces hurdles and barriers with various Indian cultures, traditions, and especially societal norms. And the result was considered a remarkable judgment when the supreme court of India legalized homosexual sex and decriminalized sec 377 on 6th September 2016. Since then, things moved faster in terms of acceptance and normality regarding the existence of queer people and the love of queer couples. The LGBTQIA+ community started blossoming in various ways like queer people started coming out with their respective identities and orientations, heterosexual people started respecting and supporting the queer community and people started celebrating pride months collectively every single year.
But being a queer individual, do you think is it all enough for you to mark your queer independence in India? Do you consider a queer person's freedom is all about enjoying intimate encounters with other queer people without ending up behind the bars? On a broader spectrum, if you think as an Indian citizen, can you vouch for a queer person's safety from judgmental criticism, physical abuse, mental bullying, and psychological assault? Can you vouch for effortless ease when it comes to queer couples getting married and planning a family in India? No one can. Under the current circumstances, when a woman can't even walk by feeling safe at midnight on the roads of this country, how can you vouch for a queer person's freedom?
Regrettably, this is India's grimmest reality even after achieving the milestone of 75 years of Independence. Freedom is a different concept altogether unlike independence. An independent person can't utilize his utmost freedom in this country even though many freedom rights were designed for every human on this land in this constitution because of the ignorance in observing the modern reality, stubbornness in accepting the change, unawareness in a few political minds that rule the country with stone age mindsets and unconsciousness in the world's evolution.
Where's the aspect of queer freedom
when two gay individuals who are in love can't go forward in planning a family
when two lesbians can't get married to each other
when a queer person who wants to be a single parent can't adopt a baby
when transgenders can't earn bread because of a lack of opportunities
when a bisexual person goes according to heteronormative marital terms even though his/her interest is in a same-sex relationship
when an asexual person forcibly gets married because everyone around that person concludes it as a phase/disease instead of orientation
when a genderqueer person gets harassed for one's dressing and behavioural patterns
when an androgynous person can't figure out the inclination towards masculinity and femininity in terms of employment opportunities
when a gender-neutral person always gets moral policed by people regarding one's washroom choices
when a queer person is forced to tick the option of "others" in every Indian application form
when a queer individual constantly gets judged by one's identity and orientation even though the country claims the normality regarding the queer community
when queer people hardly can avail any of the medical facilities and social amenities without being questioned about one's and one's partner's gender identity as mere male or female.
Queer freedom in India remained a question. No one in this country can claim extensive support for any queer individual in any possible way including the influential and privileged queer people because the constraint of freedom in India is restricted toward queer people in India. Apart from legalizing gay sex and celebrating pride months (after many struggles faced by queer activists), nothing has progressed further, especially in terms of allowing a queer person to establish a family and lead a stress-free life on this land. Altogether, queer independence in India is still at stake even after 75 years of Indian Independence, because freedom in this country has not yet been availed completely, not only by queer people but also by women.
Celebrating Independence Day with utmost patriotism is a fine option but one must also observe the other side of the coin and the things that need to be changed to observe real independence. India maintains a notable percentage of the queer population and sadly many queer people are moving out of the country where queer terms are quite feasible and flexible, where they are getting treated respectfully, and where they can celebrate their queer personalities with the utmost freedom.
Just a reminder!