Is Homosexuality Legal in India? A Guide for LGBTQ+ Travellers

Until 2018, Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was used to criminalise sex between men and between women. On 6 September 2018, five judges of the Supreme Court ruled in Navtej Singh Johar and others v. Union of India that the section was unconstitutional as far as it applied to consensual sex between adults.

In the words of the Chief Justice's judgment, Section 377, "so far as it penalizes any consensual sexual relationship between two adults", whether two men, a man and a woman or two women, "cannot be regarded as constitutional". Justice Chandrachud's judgment declared that members of the LGBT community are entitled, like all other citizens, to the full range of constitutional rights. The Court also overruled its earlier decision in Suresh Kumar Koushal v. Naz Foundation, which had upheld the section. Acts without consent remained an offence.

For a visitor, this means a same-sex relationship between adults is not a crime anywhere in India. The UK, Australian and Canadian governments all confirm it in their travel advice.

Indian law does not recognise same-sex marriage. In Supriyo @ Supriya Chakraborty v. Union of India, decided on 17 October 2023, couples asked the Supreme Court to read same-sex marriage into the Special Marriage Act. The Court declined. In the Chief Justice's words, it "cannot either strike down the constitutional validity of SMA or read words into the SMA because of its institutional limitations", and it lies with Parliament and the state legislatures to make laws recognising and regulating queer marriage. No such law has been passed.

The governments put this in slightly different words: the UK Foreign Office says same-sex marriage is illegal, and Australia's Smartraveller says it is not legally recognised. Either way, a couple should not expect Indian authorities, hotels or hospitals to treat them as spouses. If that matters for your trip, for example for a visa, a medical decision or travelling with children, ask your own embassy before you go.

The Supreme Court's 2023 judgment records that Parliament passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act in 2019 to protect the rights of the transgender community, including protection from discrimination. The travel advice is more cautious about daily life: Canada warns that LGBTQ+ people could be discriminated against on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics, and Australia says Indian law does not guarantee LGBTQIA+ travellers freedom from discrimination.

Legal protection and social acceptance are not the same thing, and the governments say so:

• United Kingdom. Indian society is conservative, the Foreign Office says, and attitudes to LGBT+ people can be less accepting than in the UK. It warns of a risk of harassment and discrimination, especially outside the big cities, and says showing affection in public may attract unwanted and negative attention.
• Australia. Smartraveller says visible displays of same-sex affection can draw unwanted attention.
• Canada. Canada's advice confirms that Indian law does not criminalise same-sex relationships, and warns that LGBTQ+ travellers could still face discrimination.

Restraint in public applies to everyone in India, not only to same-sex couples: Australia notes that even physical contact between a man and a woman in public might be considered inappropriate.

• Keep affection private, especially in smaller towns and at religious sites, where the UK and Australia ask all visitors to respect dress and behaviour codes.
• Be wary of online introductions. Canada warns that a person you have met only online and are travelling to India to meet may be part of a scam, and our page on tourist scams in India covers the other common tricks.
• Know the emergency numbers. Dial 112 for police, fire or ambulance, and keep your embassy's number with you.
• Read your government's advice for LGBTQ+ travellers. The UK and Australia both publish general guidance for LGBT+ and LGBTQIA+ travellers, linked from their India pages, alongside the India travel advisories for the country itself.

On a private trip you travel with your own driver and guide rather than in a group. The wider picture, from the areas governments warn against to how to get around safely, is in our India safety guide, and our first-time India guide explains what to expect on arrival.