The Centre on Monday sought adjournment of petitions praying for recognition of same-sex marriages under existing law.
The Centre on Monday told the Delhi High Court that there are other urgent matters that need consideration and that “nobody is dying because they don’t have a marriage certificate.”
Appearing for Centre, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta submitted before the court that the state is dealing with a pandemic at present and there are other urgent matters which need consideration. “As a government, our focus in terms of urgency is on urgent, imminent issues,” submitted Mehta, adding that law officers are also dealing with pandemic-related cases.
Senior Advocate Saurabh Kirpal, representing some of the petitioners, told the court that the government is supposed to be neutral and the court has to determine urgency. Senior Advocate Dr Menaka Guruswamy, who also represents some of the petitioners, told the court that there are 70 million LGBTQ people in this country.
The reply was in response to three petitions filed last year.
