New Delhi: The courts cannot wait for a “majoritarian government” to decide on enacting, amending or striking down a law if it violates fundamental rights, the Supreme Court asserted on Tuesday. “We would not wait for the majoritarian government to enact, amend or not to enact any law to deal with violations of fundamental rights,” a five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra observed while hearing a batch of petitions seeking decriminalisation of consensual gay sex.
The courts are not in obligation to wait and would act if any violation of fundamental right was brought before it, the bench, which also comprised Justices R.F. Nariman, A.M. Khan-wilkar, D.Y. Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra, said.
Earlier, the Supreme Court reserved its verdict on a clutch of pleas challenging the Constitutional validity of IPC Section 377 which criminalises consensual gay sex. The verdict is likely to be pronounced before October 2 this year as Justice Misra would be retiring as Chief Justice on that day.
