Supreme Court · 2018 · (2018) 10 SCC 1
Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India
W.P. (Criminal) No. 76 of 2016 and connected matters
Parties: Navtej Singh Johar and others v. Union of India
Decision: 6 September 2018
Bench: Dipak Misra CJI, R.F. Nariman J., A.M. Khanwilkar J., D.Y. Chandrachud J., Indu Malhotra J.
Plain-language summary
A Constitution Bench held that Section 377 IPC was unconstitutional insofar as it criminalised consensual sexual conduct between adults. The judgments grounded the result in equality, dignity, privacy and freedom of expression while retaining the provision for non-consensual acts and acts involving minors.
Key holdings
- Consensual adult same-sex relations cannot be criminalised.
- Sexual orientation is an intrinsic aspect of identity and privacy.
- Constitutional morality prevails over social prejudice.
- The ruling overruled Suresh Kumar Koushal on this issue.
Official judgment
This summary is informational. Read and cite the court’s judgment for the authoritative text.
Supreme Court of India — official judgment