LGBT+ Rights Claims for Marriage Equality and the Possibilities of Transforming Indian Family Law

The Indian Supreme Court decriminalized homosexuality in 2018 and recognized the equal constitutional citizenship of LGBT+ Indians. Since then, several petitions seeking marriage equality have been filed before Indian courts. In parallel, critics have argued that traditional approaches to LGBT+ equality ignore problematic family law institutions, and have stressed the need to think beyond legal inclusion to recognize diverse families. These arguments are not unique to India. Claiming LGBT+ rights within existing family law institutions has divided LGBT+ activists the world over. The commonly advanced argument is that assimilation into existing patriarchal social institutions disregards radical transformational possibilities. However, experiences in jurisdictions like the United States challenge this premise and show how family law can potentially be transformed through LGBT+ rights claims. While we still await an authoritative judicial pronouncement on marriage equality in India, this article argues that legally recognizing marriage equality may positively impact existing family laws by generating arguments for expanding recognition of diverse families. It shows that achieving marriage equality through the recognition of LGBT+ relational rights, comprising LGBT+ family equality and the right to legal recognition of LGBT+ relationships, has the potential for progressively expanding Indian parenthood laws. The article specifically demonstrates how this is possible in guardianship, assisted reproduction, and adoption laws and may benefit diverse different-sex families, single parents, and persons in non-marital relationships.

本研究关注印度婚姻平等与家庭法之间的互动，探讨通过承认LGBT+关系权利实现婚姻平等，如何推动印度家庭法（尤其是亲子法）的进步性变革。作者试图突破“同化与转型”二元对立，主张LGBT+婚姻平等不仅是争取法律承认的目标，更是改革监护权、辅助生殖和收养等家庭法律的切入点，强调婚姻平等如何为多样化的家庭形式（如非婚关系、单亲家庭）提供法律空间。

研究采用比较法视角，借鉴美国等司法管辖区婚姻平等如何推动家庭法变革的经验，分析印度世俗与印度教婚姻和亲子法在LGBT+权利框架下可能发生的法律变迁。作者拒绝简单移植外国法理，而是以他国法律变迁为参照，提出适用于印度的法律改革路径。研究同时结合印度现有家庭法改革辩论，强调法律变革与社会、政治现实的相互作用，主张通过LGBT+关系权利推动更广泛的法律与社会变革。

本研究探讨了LGBT+群体通过LGBT+关系权利主张婚姻平等如何推动印度亲子法的变革，促进对多样化家庭形式（包括异性家庭、单亲家庭和非婚关系者）的法律包容性。尽管印度最高法院在2023年Supriyo Chakraborty v. Union of India案中裁定印度宪法不承认婚姻权，且《特别婚姻法》的性别规定不违反平等条款，但该裁决在性别与性取向法理上存在矛盾和不足。本文主张通过LGBT+关系权利提供婚姻平等的法理框架，为未来宪法诉求提供新的论证路径。此外，随着婚姻平等争议从司法领域转向立法领域，本文强调婚姻平等不仅是对现有体制的同化，更可成为推动印度家庭法变革的工具，为LGBT+权利倡导者提供法律承认的论据，造福于LGBT+群体及多样化的家庭形式，进而为印度及其他司法辖区的婚姻与家庭法改革提供路线图。