India

India has made progress on LGBTIQ issues over the last decade. In 2018, the Indian Supreme Court struck down laws criminalizing same-sex relations in a historic decision that cited a UN submission authored by Outright. In December 2023, the Indian Parliament passed a law enacting a new criminal code, the Bharatiya Nyay Samhita, which entirely removes Section 377, the provision criminalizing “carnal intercourse against the order of nature.” Political support for LGBTIQ equality has been increasing in recent years, with major political parties including LGBTIQ issues in their 2024 election manifestos.

However, there are still barriers to full LGBTIQ equality. India does not legally recognize same-sex partnerships, and the Supreme Court ruled in October 2023 that it does not have the authority to legalize same-sex marriage, emphasizing that enacting a law on this matter falls under the jurisdiction of the Parliament. In the same ruling, however, the Supreme Court directed the national and state governments to enact measures against anti-LGBTIQ discrimination and violence, including nonconsensual medical interventions on intersex children, invasive requirements for legal gender recognition, and police harassment toward LGBTIQ persons. In 2023, the government ordered state governments to recognize same-sex couples as part of the same household for the purposes of food ration cards and banking. In 2025, the Madras High Court ruled that same‑sex couples have the right to constitute a family even without marriage.

Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender expression, or sex characteristics is not banned. Trans people, men who have sex with men, and sex workers are prohibited from donating blood, despite a 2025 Supreme Court decision ordering a review of such policy. However, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act of 2019 protects transgender people from discrimination in health care, housing, employment, education, and the provision of goods and services. 

India has made some efforts to address conversion practices. Following a favorable decision by the Madras High Court in the state of Tamil Nadu, the National Medical Commission (the regulatory body of medical professionals in India) classified “conversion therapy” as professional misconduct in 2022 and has empowered State Medical Councils to take disciplinary action against medical professionals performing such practices. 

At the same time, the legal framework governing trans recognition has recently become more restrictive. While the 2019 Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act recognized the right to self-perceived gender identity, a 2026 amendment removed that language, narrowed the statutory definition of “transgender person,” and made legal recognition more dependent on state and medical gatekeeping. Under the amended framework, the District Magistrate must examine the recommendation of a medical board before issuing a certificate of identity. The amendment also makes it mandatory for medical institutions to report gender-affirming surgeries to the authorities, raising serious concerns about privacy, surveillance, and access to care. These changes appear to contravene the spirit of the Supreme Court’s 2014 ruling in NALSA v. Union of India, which affirmed the right of trans persons, as well as hijras and “eunuchs,” to identify as either “male,” “female,” or a “third gender” based on self-determination.

Intersex people are often conflated with transgender people and/or hijras. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act of 2019 defines a “person with intersex variations” and includes intersex people within the ambit of transgender persons, but fails to address intersex people’s rights substantively. Medically unnecessary and nonconsensual genital surgeries on intersex minors are legal in most of the country. However, in 2019, Tamil Nadu became the first state to ban unnecessary surgeries on intersex infants, following a court decision that recognized intersex persons’ right to bodily integrity. The court called for a deferment of “intersex genital mutilation” (IGM) until the intersex person is old enough to provide informed consent, affirming that “the parent’s consent cannot be considered as the child’s consent.” In 2021, the Delhi High Court ordered the government to decide on a recommendation by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights to ban intersex genital mutilation, but as of this writing, no further definitive action has been taken. In December 2025, the Indian Supreme Court referred a public interest petition on regulatory protection for intersex minors to a three-judge bench for detailed consideration, but as of writing, it has not yet issued a definitive ruling banning such surgeries nationwide.