The Delhi High Court.
Credit: PTI File Photo
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday agreed to hear a plea challenging the exclusion of any provision in the new penal law, Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) relating to punishment for the offence of ‘unnatural sex’ and ‘sodomy’.
The plea was mentioned for urgent listing before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela which said it would be heard on Tuesday, if in order by afternoon.
The lawyer submitted that BNS excludes any provision equivalent to section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) due to which every person, especially LGBTQ community, will be affected.
Section 377 of IPC punishes non-consensual unnatural sex between two adults, sexual activities against minors and bestiality.
BNS, which replaced Indian Penal Code (IPC), came into force from July 1, 2024.