With key issues related to them finding no mention in heated election debates, transgenders and gay rights activists yesterday asked political parties to include their demands in the agenda and make their stands clear on issues like decriminalisation of homosexuality.
With key issues related to them finding no mention in heated election debates, transgenders and gay rights activists yesterday asked political parties to include their demands in the agenda and make their stands clear on issues like decriminalisation of homosexuality.
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Gay pride: We got rights too, you know! |
At a people's panchayat in the capital on resisting stigma and homophobia, the activists said political parties, which have an archaic mindset, need to wake up to the existence of sexual minorities or face electoral boycott from the estimated four crore population.
"In Mumbai, our groups are actually meeting political parties with major demands, including decriminalisation of homosexuality and a law against discrimination," said Mumbai-based gay rights activist Ashok Row Kavi.
"Every reaction from the parties is conveyed through our wide networks to the members of the community throughout the country," he added.
Kavi said it's high time the members of the community get together on a larger scale to strike a political bargain.
"We feel that the agenda of political parties across the spectrum should include their stand on sexual minorities," said a statement released by the activists and experts after the panchayat.
