The document is a letter from Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, a Ph.D. candidate at Delhi University, to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India opposing the petition of Naz Foundation challenging the constitutional validity of section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. Alam argues that removing prohibitions on homosexual acts would violate children's right to reverent role models, create a supportive climate for adoption of homosexuality, and endanger children's lives. Alam also contends that there is no recognition of sexual minorities in the constitution, that traditional gender roles should continue to apply to homosexuals, and that faith-based counseling is better than seeking legitimacy for deviant sexual acts. Alam requests that the Delhi High Court dismiss the

1. To
The Chief Justice
Supreme Court of India
New Delhi
Sub: Reasons for preserving section 377 of Indian Panel Code and rejecting the appeal of NAZ
foundation
Honorable Sir,
1. I, Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, a Ph.D. candidate at Delhi University would like to draw your
attention to the petition of Naz Foundation that has been accepted in the High Court of Delhi.
The petition challenges “the constitutional validity of section 377 of the IPC on the grounds
that it criminalizes homosexual act even between two consenting adults”. (The Hindustan
Times December 8, 2001). The division bench comprising of Justice Devinder Gupta and
Justice Sanjay Kishen Kaul issued notices to the respondents including the Union
government, the Delhi government, the Commissioner of Police and the National Aids
Control Organization (NACO) and sought their replies by January 28, 2002.
2. I would like to respond to this as a citizen of India and a world citizen and call for a dismissal
of this petition. A favorable judgement for the petition will violate the children to have
reverent role models, and, most importantly this will create a supportive social climate for the
adoption of homosexuality in India.
3. I would like to strongly oppose the move of Naz Foundation as an anti-children, anti-family
and anti-God. Also through my research work, I have proved that environmental factors for
the adoption of homosexuality are ignored by all these campaigners of civil liberties while
overemphasizing the contribution of genetic determinism. There is a case for “hijras” but then
there is no case for the homosexuals who have been imitating a deviant and degenerate sexual
practice that has been approved in the European and American laws. My related academic
submissions pointing out the need to review of the decision of American Psychiatric
Association contained in my conceptual organization for description, analysis, prediction and
control of the personal/ social / world order can be seen at
http://updates.takingitglobal.org/read/Muhammad_Mukhtar_Alam . The submissions are web
referred at a youth site are part of the findings of the discourse analysis for my Ph.D.
dissertation on “A Study of the Cognitive Representations related to the Concept of World
Citizen” that has been presented to University of Delhi in September 2000.
4. The petition contends that article 377 of the IPC violates the liberties enshrined in the
constitution under article 14.15,19 and 21 in so far as it penalizes predominantly homosexual
acts in private between consenting adults. This can be seen that this is an instance of
overgeneralization for the provisions of the cited articles. There is a concern for the rights of
the children for reverent role models. Making homosexual act lawful will mean endangering
the lives of many children who are being already provided with an overdose of atheistic
libertarian values where pre-marital and extramarital affairs do not get denounced, punished
and condemned.
5. The article 377 of the IPC deals with the subject of unnatural offences and states that
“whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of the nature with any man,
woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of
either description for a term which may extend upto ten years and shall also be liable to fine”.
There is a need to preserve this provision as its deletion even with regard to the homosexuals
and lesbians will create problems for the collective social health and individual health.
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2. 6. It has been argued, “section 377 creates an arbitrary and unreasonable classification between
natural (penile-vaginal) and unnatural (penile-non vaginal) sexual acts that violates article
14’s equal protection before and under law”. Here Naz Foundation already assumes the
existence of a “sexual minority” whose rights are considered to be violated. There is no
recognition of such minority in the constitution. There should not be any recognition to such
a minority in the law. Naz foundation is absolutely misguided in mimicking the deviant
atheistic intellectual and political currents originating in Europe and US in this regard. Also
Naz Foundation is misguiding the court on its understanding of constitutionally recognized
minorities. There is no violation of the article 14 of the constitution with reference to the
provisions of article 377 as there is no recognition for “sexual orientation” as a category. If
there is recognition for sexual minority there can be also a call to recognize the human rights
of the thieves and pickpockets to indulge in their smart acts of fooling cheating and looting.
7. It has been argued that Section 377 imposes traditional gender stereotypes concerning the
“natural” sexual roles for men and women upon the sexual minorities”. Here again there is an
explicit reference to the “sexual minority” which refers to men and women who have been
misguided for appropriating homosexual acts. Instead of calling for help in correcting the
deviant behavior an appeal is being made to recognize it as a normal and natural act. All
traditional gender roles cannot be denounced. Atheistic feminist discourse needs to have
recognition of the limits that are imposed biologically, ecologically, and morally. “Hijras”
need a special rehabilitative attention and for them there is no imposition of gender roles.
Hijra’s are sexually challenged with reference to reproductive capacities and there is no
imposition of gender roles on them. For homosexuals and lesbians, specific gender roles will
continue to be socially desirable as men and women.
8. According to the petition, the social effects (of article 377) drive gay men underground with
a devastating impact upon HIV prevention efforts as “it becomes difficult to identify and
target this population for HIV /AIDS prevention efforts through education and provision of
medical services”. I would like to denounce this contention, as most of men who have
unnatural sex with men cannot be considered to be so ignorant and illiterate. As per
journalistic accounts most of the men and women identifying themselves, as gay and lesbian
respectively are quite well educated. There is no need for making homosexuality lawful in
our country. There is need to campaign for the reverting to the pre-1973 position in so far as
the related categorization in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of US is concerned. Sheldon
B. Korchin has noted the fact interestingly in his book on Clinical Psychology that it was the
gay movement in US that compelled APA to change the understanding of homosexuality in
1973. “Homosexuality was no longer considered a sexual deviance rather it was just an
'alternative orientation'” (Sheldon J. Korchin (1998),"Modern Clinical Psychology,
Principles of Intervention in the Clinic and Community", CSB Publishers). It may be noted
that there is hardly anything “oriental” about this “orientation”. Homosexuality is a product
of lack of moral control and absolutely wrong socialization .It is curable. The best cure can be
tried by seeking forgiveness for the past sinful deeds.
9. It is important to campaign for the restoration of the old definition of degenerate practice of
homosexuality that is being celebrated and paraded in the dancing halls and bars of the
irreverent and atheistic West whereas practice of religion is propagated to be restricted to the
privacy of the homes. Also, I would like to appeal the people in the “orient” to campaign for
deleting the word orientation as this word has been abused by referring this to a sexual
deviance in DSM manual of American Psychiatric Association.
10. According to a study conducted by Himachal Pradesh Voluntary Health Association, Shimla
20% of the children have experienced homosexual atrocities. “Another after effect of this is
sharp increase in Transportation work which mainly comprise of rural people of HP with
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3. large involvement of children working as cleaner. For one Big Cement plant viz. ACC
Cement Barmana approximately 8000 trucks are operating. As per one small study 20% of
such children have experienced homosexual atrocities”. There are other studies that have
shown the involvement of homosexuals in sexual abuse of the children through Internet as
well. Thus, I would like to argue that granting revision and elimination of the prohibitory
provisions of article 377 will further increase the incidence of child sex abuse by male
homosexuals. In UK, there had been a demand by the gays for reducing the age of consent
from 18 to 14. Considering the dominance of the atheistic liberal ethos, many children and
adults will be become prone to the abuse of homosexuals. Also there had been a study where
70% of the abused children had been the victims of sodomy by homosexuals.
11. Considering the above I would like to appeal for the dismissal of the petition of Naz
Foundation while also seeking the deletion of references to adoption of homosexuality as
matter of human right in the documents of Amnesty International.
12. Considering the developments in Europe and US in this regard there might be a call for
redefining institution of family so as to incorporate homosexual couples as family. There may
be call then for them to be considered as legitimate recipient of abandoned children for
adoption. Thus it can be seen that for many youth, children and future generations permission
of deletion in provision of article 377 of IPC, there will be a great intellectual confusion. This
will also have significant adverse impact in the families where some boys and girls under the
persuasion such neo-liberal atheistic “social workers”, academics and homosexuals will be
called on to “come out of closet” and announce to the families and relatives that they are gay.
13. According to a study reported in Hindustan Times of 10 May 2001, two psychologists led by
Dr.Robert Spitzer proved that highly motivated homosexuals could be converted. They also
repudiated the attitude of the mental health professionals “who have bought the idea that once
you are gay you can not be changed”. He and his colleagues have found that 66% of men and
44% of women had achieved good heterosexual functioning. With reference to the petition of
Naz Foundation it can be seen that there is no reference for the existence of controversy on
the etiology of homosexuality. Instead, they have been calling for making homosexuality
lawful.
14. In case, there is a favorable judgement, there cannot be an end to the social denunciation of
lesbians and homosexuals in India considering the strong conservative values that are shared
across the religious groups in this regard. If the petitioners and their tutors think that they are
“progressives” then they must recognize that pious Hindus, practicing Muslims, Christians,
Jains and Buddhists will continue denouncing them for their misguided understanding and
seek correction in attitudes. Considering the history of dissidence this may be noted that
appropriation of homosexuality is an instance of the most extreme and worst development in
the anti-Christian discourse in Europe that was championed by Michel Foucault who could
have excluded gays and lesbians while advocating for better treatment of women, blacks and
prisoners. But then in his zeal for unearthing the archeology of knowledge he tried to have
“limit experience” in the bars with provisions for sadomasochist experiences and liberated the
gays and lesbians from the psychiatric label of sexual deviance. Formation of groups of
lesbians and homosexuals followed later and they have a vision to change the legislation in
all societies. Unfortunately, Richard Falk has also included such a change in the existing
legislations as part of “humane governance” (Falk, Richard (1995), "Towards a new global
politics ,world order model project report of the global civilization initiative", Polity Press
Cambridge, UK )
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4. 15. Considering the exclusive studies by the undersigned, I may be called in person for
presenting my case.
Considering the above I would like to appeal for the dismissal of the petition with a severe
reprimand for Naz Foundation while suggesting them to use faith based instruments for gays and
lesbians. They can do better prevention of AIDS by faith based counseling than seeking
legitimacy for deviant sexual acts. I would like to earnestly request you for the needful
injunction for Delhi High Court in this regard.
Thanking you in anticipation
Respectfully
Muhammad Mukhtar Alam
As a Ph.D. candidate, Department of Psychology, University of Delhi, Delhi-11007
15/4/2001
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