Sir — Sandhya Jain’s column is a work of breathtaking ignorance. Discriminatory laws are indefensible in a free, modern society, and Section 377 is a discriminatory law.
The author’s central argument seems to be this: We need Section 377 to fight paedophilia. She claims that paedophilia is a “Western intrusion” on Indian values. There are so many problems with this latter statement that wading into them would only be a distraction, so I will only tackle her central argument.
If Ms Jain bothered to do a bit of research, she would know that India already has a de facto anti-paedophilia law. It is called the ‘age of consent’, and is currently set at 18 years of age. Anyone who attempts to have sex with a person below the age of 18 is guilty of rape.
But, perhaps Ms Jain would like a more direct anti-paedophilia law. I fully support her on this front; however Section 377 is not that law. Section 377 criminalises the act of love between two informed, consenting adults. Ms Jain’s bigotry should not be an excuse for taking them away.
