As SC examines the issue, a look at status of same-sex marriages globally

The Supreme Court of India is hearing requests to legalise same-sex marriages today. This is a day after the government clarified its stance against any such legal move. The government had said that such requests are "mere urban elitist views of social acceptance."

The Netherlands became the first country to legalise same-sex marriage when the Dutch parliament passed a landmark bill in December, 2000 allowing the practise. The Dutch law allowed same-sex couples the right to marry, divorce, and adopt children.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation monitors developments in the legal recognition of same-sex marriages globally. Currently, 34 countries in the world grant social recognition to same-sex marriages.

Among these, 23 countries have legalised same-sex marriage through legislation. Australia, Ireland, and Switzerland legalised same-sex marriages through legislation after conducting nation-wide votes.

Not all countries have legislative arrangements for same-sex marriage. 10 countries have legalised it through court decisions. These countries include Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, and Slovenia. At this point, these countries have legislation to support same-sex marriage.

Countries that legalised same-sex marriage last year, 2022

• Cuba legalised same-sex marriage on September 25, 2022, through a national referendum.
• Andorra made same-sex marriage legal on July 21, 2022.
• On July 8, 2022, the Constitutional Court of Slovenia ruled that the ban on same-sex marriage is in violation of the Constitution of Slovenia and mandated the parliament to pass legislation to legalise the same. The parliament passed the law on October 4, 2022.

Countries that are considering same-sex marriages

The Czech Republic, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, and India are considering the legal aspects of same-sex marriages. The supreme court of India is hearing petitions seeking legalisation of same-sex marriages.

Countries that have legalised same-sex marriage

There are currently 34 countries where same-sex marriage is legal. As per data available on the website of Human rights, countries that legally recognise same-sex marriages include, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Uruguay.