Did you know there is a phrase in academic literature called 'gay brain drain?'
(Photo: The Quint)
Video Editor: Puneet Bhatia
Senior Editor: Shelly Walia
Did you know there is a phrase in academic literature called 'gay brain drain?' It is the kind of migration which is not economic in nature, but the main moving force for you to migrate is your sexual orientation.
While multiple petitions have been filed before the Delhi High Court seeking the recognition of same-sex marriage, one such plea focuses exclusively on the 'gay brain drain aspect.'
The four petitioners, three of whom have already migrated to other countries, are fighting for the Right to Marry – simply because they want to live a life with 'dignity'.
A world bank study estimates that India loses 1.3 percent of GDP because of higher rates of suicide and depression among queer community – a problem that can be fixed by granting equal rights to the members of the LGBTQIA+.
Petitioner Lakshmi Manoharan, now a machine learning engineer living in the American city of Seattle, explains how she too is an example of brain drain due to lack of rights.
Petitoner Udit Sood, who is a lawyer by profession, said that he never planned on staying in California for a long time. It was not opportunities, but the right to basic rights, that made him stay back.
The petitioners state that the Supreme Court was pretty explicit when it said, "The LGBTQ community possesses the same human, fundamental and constitutional rights as other citizens."
So, the idea that the Constitution gives the right to marry to heterosexuals and says 'homosexuals, tough luck', is just inconsistent with precedent, they stress.
"While LGBTQ people undoubtedly bear the highest burden when it comes to exclusionary policy of not allowing equal rights, it is important to recognise that it has repercussions for everyone, for every citizen of India. For the country, the economy as a whole," Saattvic added.
More than anything, they just want to be with their partners, and enjoy all the rights that heterosexual couples do.
Delhi-based petitioner Gagan Paul, who works as a Sales Development Head, is considering moving abroad – so that he could marry and have a family some day.
The petitioners stress that if they wanted to move somewhere else, it should 100 percent be their decision – without policies and social circumstances surrounding their sexuality that drove them out. Some day, they hope to return to India to live with dignity.
They want to be able to lead a life, like any other couple, in the presence of their family and friends.
(This story was first published on 14 July 2021. It has been republished from The Quint’s archives to mark four years of reading down of Section 377 by India's Supreme Court.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)