‘All or nothing’: Woman who helped repeal Article 377 marries partner of 10 years | Latest News Delhi

Ritu Dalmia, the restaurateur and Indo-Italian gastronomy expert whose petition helped decriminalize same-sex relations in India in 2018, married her partner Michaela Tedson in South Africa on November 5.

Dalmia was one of several petitioners whose public interest litigation (PIL) filed in the Supreme Court culminated the decades-long fight to decriminalize consensual adult same-sex relations.

Dalmia posted photos of herself and her partner of 10 years at the Leeu Estates Hotel in Franschhoek, South Africa. Surrounded by friends and family, Dalmia wore a long black coat over a vest and brightly striped trousers, while Tedson wore a bright red tiered dress with large polka dots.

“We decided to elope and get married and it was amazing,” Dalmia said.

German citizens Dalmia and Tedson live in Goa with their four dogs and three cats.

While Germany recognizes same-sex marriage, India does not.

“We chose South Africa because the country is very close to our hearts. This is one of the first places in the world where homosexuals are legally protected,” Dalmia said.

In 1996, South Africa’s newly adopted constitution guaranteed protections against discrimination based on race, sex, gender, language, birth, marital status, religion, belief, culture and sexual orientation, making it one of the first to expand such protections around the world. first country to do so. to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community. However, recognition of same-sex marriages did not come until a decade later.

Last year, the high court refused to recognize the right of LGBTQIA+ individuals to marry under the Special Marriage Act (SMA) and ruled that marriage was not a fundamental right.

In 2018, a five-judge bench led by former Chief Justice of India Dipak Mishra read out Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalizes “sexual intercourse against the order of nature” and has long been interpreted as referring to homosexuality.

Dalmia, whose famous Diva brand serves Italian food to Indians and Italians (it has businesses in New Delhi, Mumbai and Milan, Italy), also runs a successful catering service for destinations and lavish weddings.

Milan, where Dalmia has worked for several years, recognizes civil unions that give same-sex couples similar rights available to heterosexual couples. However, joint adoption rights are not available for same-sex couples; This is a move that the government under Giorgia Meloni started just last year.

Dalmia said that she and her partner want to get married properly. “It’s all or nothing,” the restaurateur said.