A battle for sexual rights
SIDDHARTH NARRAIN
in New Delhi


The campaign for sexual rights gets a boost with the Supreme Court taking up an appeal against a High Court order dismissing a petition challenging Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code.

IN the recently released movie "My Brother Nikhil", the protagonist, Nikhil, is a homosexual man suffering from HIV/AIDS [human immunodeficiency virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome]. He is detained by the government under the Goa Public Health Act, 1985, which empowers the State government to isolate persons living with HIV/AIDS by confining them in wards and institutions for extended periods. Nikhil's sister Anu (played by Juhi Chawla) and partner Nigel, along with his lawyer, launch a campaign to free him. One evening, after campaigning all over the city for his release, Nigel comes home only to find his house ransacked and "faggot" painted across the entrance to his house.