Topic Of The Day:-“Macaulay’s shadow“
Plainly read, Section 377 punishes with imprisonment for life or for a term of up to 10 years any person who voluntarily has “carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal”. Over the years, the term, “against the order of nature”, has been used to persecute members of the LGBTQ community, treating any non-procreative sexual act by them as acts of crime. Thomas Macaulay, the law’s drafter, despised the idea of even a debate on the legislation’s language. “We are unwilling to insert, either in the text, or in the notes, anything which could give rise to public discussion on this revolting subject,” he wrote in his chapter on “unnatural offences”. “…We are decidedly of the opinion that the injury which would be done to the morals of the community by such discussion would far more than compensate for any benefits which might be derived from legislative measures framed with the greatest precision.”
Like many other colonial-era laws, therefore, Section 377 was inserted with a view to upholding a distinctly Victorian notion of public morality. But post-Independence, the law remained on the books, as an edict that the Indian state saw as intrinsic to the enforcement of its own societal mores. The criminal law, the government believed, was a legitimate vehicle through which it could impose and entrench in society its own ideas of what constituted a good life. Societal morality, to it, trumped constitutional guarantees of equality and liberty.
MEANINGS AND WORDS
1) carnal
Meaning : relating to physical, especially sexual, needs and activities.
Synonyms : earthly , lewd
Antonyms : decent
Example : “carnal desire”
2) persecute
Meaning : subject (someone) to hostility and ill-treatment, especially because of their race or political or religious beliefs.
Synonyms : harass , injure
Antonyms : assist
Example : “his followers were persecuted by the authorities”
3) despised
Meaning : feel contempt or a deep repugnance for.
Synonyms : deride , detest
Antonyms : admire
Example : “he despised himself for being selfish”
4) notion
Meaning : a conception of or belief about something.
Synonyms : assumption , approach
Antonyms : being
Example : “children have different notions about the roles of their parents”
5) intrinsic
Meaning : belonging naturally; essential.
Synonyms : inherent
Antonyms : acquired
Example : “access to the arts is intrinsic to a high quality of life”
6) entrench
Meaning : establish (an attitude, habit, or belief) so firmly that change is very difficult or unlikely.
Synonyms : define , ingrain
Antonyms : discourage
Example : “ageism is entrenched in our society”
7) trump
Meaning : (in bridge, whist, and similar card games) play a trump on (a card of another suit).
Synonyms : ascendancy , choice
Antonyms : block
Example : “why on earth did you trump my ace?”
8) patently
Meaning : clearly; without doubt.
Synonyms : decidedly , notably
Antonyms : unremarkably
Example : “these claims were patently false”
9) discriminate
Meaning : recognize a distinction; differentiate.
Synonyms : segregate , favor
Antonyms : confuse
Example : “babies can discriminate between different facial expressions”
10) slew
Meaning : turn or slide violently or uncontrollably.
Synonyms : abundance , bundle
Antonyms : debt
Example : “the Renault slewed from side to side in the snow”
11) dignity
Meaning : the state or quality of being worthy of honour or respect.
Synonyms : decorum , greatness
Antonyms : dishonor
Example : “the dignity of labour”
