ABSTRACT
In contemporary India, gay and lesbian culture – which in the past and in traditional literary practice and culture, has been tolerated and even celebrated as a manifestation of spiritual love – is increasingly being associated with corruption and the failure to preserve national purity. Just when incipient forms of queer activism are beginning to register their presence as legitimate and powerful forces, the ascendant Hindu political right poses a formidable challenge. As various queer cultures emerge as deeply politicized, the prevailing culture of India casts them as impure (hijras and kothis), alien (gays, lesbians, bisexuals) or both. Similarly, when HIV/AIDS became a major health issue in India, queer sexualities became highly stigmatized in Indian politics and law. As the heritage of colonial British law, Article 377 of the Indian Penal code proscribes and punishes traditional forms of same-sex love. While the article has rarely been enforced in courts, it has been revived by the current movement for Hindu nationalism, which demands enforcement of acts to legitimize police harassment and persecution of gays and lesbians.
