The Supreme Court has received a fresg affidavit from the Central government in the same sex marriage case seeking directions to add all States and Union Territories as parties to the case.
The Joint Secretary and Legislative Counsel, KR Saji Kumar has filed this affidavit.He has said that at present case involves legislative rights of the States under the seventh schedule of the Constitution and the rights of the residents of the States.
The affidavit reads that the rights of the States, especially the right to the legislate on the subject, will be affected by any decision on the subject.
The affidavit further states that various States have already legislated on the subject through delegated legislations, therefore making them a necessary and proper party to be heard in the present case.
The Government said that any decision on the present issues without making States a party or without obtaining their opinion on the present issue, would render the present adversarial exercise incomplete and truncated,specifically with regard to the rights of the States.
The affidavit while highlighting entry 5 of the concurrent list in the seventh schedule said that the framers of the Constitution have specifically provided for a separate entry in the concurrent list which is a part of the seventh schedule of the Constitution of India conferring a constitutional function of legislating with respect to this institution of “marriage”, the requisite conditions for a valid marriage, regulations of such institutions like making provisions for divorce, alimony etc.
Entry 5 read that the marriage and divorce; infants and minors; adoption; wills, intestacy and succession; joint family and partition; all matters in respect of which parties in judicial proceedings were immediately before the commencement of this Constitution subject to their personal law.
It further added that every component of Entry 5 is intrinsically interrelated and any change in any one will change everything accordingly.
The affidavit stated that the said issue goes to the root of the present matter and has far reaching implications.
The affidavit thus requests that all States and Union Territories be made a party to the present proceedings and their respective stance be taken on record and in the alternative, allow the Union of India, to finish the consultative process with the States, obtains their views/apprehensions, compile the same and place it on record before this Hon’ble Court, and only thereafter adjudicate on the present issue.