Almost a year has passed since section 377 was read down by the Supreme Court in September 2018, however, the violence subjected to the LGBTQI community has not died down. Only last week, a young person from the city who identifies himself with the LGBTQI community was abducted, brutally thrashed by his family members and coerced to marry a girl against his wishes.
The incident sent shock waves among community members in the city who are urging the government to make stringent laws to tackle homophobia across the country as just reading down of Section 377 has not changed the situation on the ground.
While no formal complaint has been lodged with the police, the survivor approached the High Court in Hyderabad and has been granted police protection. A copy of the restraining order has been forwarded to his family. Post the incident, a medico-legal case has been filed at the Osmania General Hospital, where reports suggest the survivor dislocated the muscle on his leg due to the kicks he received from his family members. He presently is under bed rest and is recovering. “This attack including eight previous attacks of yours and has only made me stronger than ever before,” noted the survivor on his social media profile.
While the incident in itself is chilling, activists note that it is only one among the many cases of harassment that happen daily.
“This is a very common issue, recently a person from the LGBTQI community in a corporate company was thrashed and bullied over a period of time. Though the management had warned the peers against it, the harassment continued. This happened well after the 377 verdict was out. Fed-up of the issue, he just resigned and left,” noted Sandy, a prominent LGBTQI activist in the city and head of Mobbera foundation.
Women from the community don’t have it any easier. In another case, a lesbian couple was locked in their homes and subjected to ‘medical treatments’ by their parents to ‘undo’ their orientation.
“It is not just parents. In fact, even the police are not LGBTQI friendly. Several persons from the community in the city meet up in areas like Public Gardens, Parade Ground and Sheesh Mahal. The cops regularly go, round them up and threaten them with cases, instead of protecting them from abuse,” added Sandy.
