'Will Pave Way For My Evolution' : Madras HC Judge Decides To Have Psycho-Education Session To Understand Same-Sex Relations Better

Justice N. Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court on Wednesday remarked that he is not fully "woke" to the concept of same-sex relationships and that he will undertake an education session with a psychologist to understand the same. The psycho-education session, the Judge said, will help me understand same-sex relationships better and will pave way for my evolution. The development happened during hearing of a protection plea filed by a same-sex couple. Significantly, the Judge had earlier asked the couple and their parents to undergo counselling in order to understand each other better. As there was significant progress between the parties, the Court was asked to issue certain guidelines to deal with cases of similar nature, so that persons involved in same sex relationships are treated with dignity and their safety is also ensured. It is at this juncture that Justice Venkatesh observed, "Insofar as the request made by the learned counsel for the petitioners for setting out guidelines in cases of this nature is concerned, I want to give myself some more time to churn." He added, "Ultimately in this case, the words must come from my heart and not from my head, and the same will not be possible if I am not fully "woke" on this aspect. For this purpose, I want to subject myself for psycho-education with Ms.Vidhya Dinakaran and I would request the psychologist to fix a convenient appointment for the same."He stated that if writes an order in this regard after undergoing psycho-education, the words will fall from his heart.Same-Sex Relationships- "I Am Trying To Break My Own Preconceived Notions": Madras High Court Judge So far as parties in the case are concerned, the Court noted that the Petitioner-couple is safely taken care of by an NGO and they also continue to talk with their parents on a regular basis. However, the parents had expressed various concerns regarding stigma attached to same-sex couples and confusions regarding the lineage, adoption and other normal consequences that follow a heterosexual relationship. In this backdrop, the Court noted that the evolution (of parents) cannot take place over night and it requires continuous effort to bring in a change. It therefore directed the parents of the Petitioners to undergo one more round of counselling with the concerned psychologist. Click Here To Download OrderRead Order

'Will Pave Way For My Evolution' : Madras HC Judge Decides To Have Psycho-Education Session To Understand Same-Sex Relations Better

Akshita Saxena

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