Stigma against a gay couple in Nagpur

Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily admitted to NDTV that some sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) are outdated and the controversial Section 377 of it that criminalises private consensual sex between adults of the same sex is one among them.

While the battle to legalise the anti-gay law goes on, a lesbian couple in Vidarbha have become the latest targets of stigma. The couple recently decided to get married and is now on run, trying to protect themselves from the anger of their own families. To make matters worse, the state government wants to prosecute them.

They are taking on their own families and fellow villagers.

"They tried to separate us. They tried to force us to leave each other. But we are together and will continue to live like this," says a partner.

The result is that their families have disowned them and their villagers are hunting for them. To add insult to injury, the state government has ordered an enquiry into their marriage, pronouncing it as being against Maharashtra's culture.

"I have ordered an enquiry. We will look at the facts. We will take action against them as per the Hindu Marriage Act," said Maharashtra Culture Minister Harshwardhan Patil.

The enquiry comes a day after the Union Law Minister hinted he was all for removing Article 377, the law that criminalises homosexuality. It ironically amplifies the disconnect between the Congress government at the Centre and the state.