In the morning of 17 February 2010, Karthik, a 26 year old Kothi-identified person in Trichy, was found murdered. The police found his body by the river Kaveri around 8 am yesterday. His throat was found slashed. Jayakumar of Snehityam (a CBO working with the issues of Kothis and Aravanis) was the first person the police contacted. An FIR was filed in the Srirangam police station. Enquires are under way.
Karthik used to work in the Thiruvanaikkaval Taluk Office.
Sangama has called for a press meet in Chennai at the Madras Press Club (on Walajah Road, Opp. M A Chidambaran Cricket Stadium, Chepauk) tomorrow, Friday, 19 February 2010, at 5.00 pm, to speak to the press about the continuing violence perpetrated on people of alternative sexual orientations and gender identities.Please do come. Contact Shivakumar @ Sangama for further details: 98406 99776 ,Best,Aniruddhan VasudevanThe Shakti Resource Center,Chennai
New Delhi: All India Muslim Personal Law Board has moved the Supreme Court challenging a Delhi High Court judgment on legalising homosexuality between consenting adults.
The Delhi High Court had on July 2 last year while holding that gay sex between two adults by mutual consent is not a crime had recommended to the government to suitably amend section 377 of IPC dealing with unnatural sex including Homosexuality and Sodomy.
The AIMPLB in its petition has contended that Gay sex is against the principle of nature and will lead to sexual corruption in society and may also increase the incidents of people contracting serious ailments like cancer and Aids.
AIMPLB has prayed to the apex court to set aside the impugned judgement of the High Court which is against the cultural and religious ethos of the country.
The Delhi High Court had on July 2 last year while holding that gay sex between two adults by mutual consent is not a crime had recommended to the government to suitably amend section 377 of IPC dealing with unnatural sex including Homosexuality and Sodomy.
The AIMPLB in its petition has contended that Gay sex is against the principle of nature and will lead to sexual corruption in society and may also increase the incidents of people contracting serious ailments like cancer and Aids.
AIMPLB has prayed to the apex court to set aside the impugned judgement of the High Court which is against the cultural and religious ethos of the country.
BANGALORE: The sordid tale of some organisations sullying the image of NGOs is highlighted by allegations of malpractices against Elango Ramachandar, the founder of the Karnataka Network for People Living With HIV (KNP+).Elango, who worked for the NGO Samraksha from 1994 to 2000 before working wholetime for KNP+, had allegedly taken Rs 1,000 from the Rs 5,000 given to him by an NGO to hand over to Saroja Puthran after her husband passed away.“I was shocked to know that Elango handed over only Rs 4,000 to Saroja,” says a former employee of the NGO.Saroja says, “He told me that he had deducted Rs 1,000 to meet his petrol expenses.” “Many people have complained to me about the corrupt practices of Elango,” says Manohar Elavarthy, the founder of Sangama, which works for sex workers and sexual minorities.There are also allegations of harassment against Elango. “He is known for using filthy language and harassing volunteers, so much so that some people even attempted to manhandle him at a meeting in Chennai a few years ago,” recalls a HIV+ person on condition of anonymity. Letters in Expresso’s possession allege that Elango has intimidated volunteers and employees of KNP+.Elango denies the allegations.“These are allegations made by some employees and volunteers thrown out of KNP+ for their poor performance.I neither harassed any volunteer or employee nor collected money for issuing salary cheques,” he says.Some people feel that Elango had played a major role in Parveen enacting a suicide drama in Bangalore a few weeks ago and claim that he and his wife provided information on the alleged suicide bid to a few newspapers and gave Parveen shelter after she was discharged from hospital. “Yes. I provided shelter to Parveen because she had no clothes and no one to turn to,” says Elango.His wife, Asha, complains of noncooperation by district networks associated with KNP+. Recently, Asha was appointed by Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society to evaluate the work of district networks associated with KNP+. “I received a threatening call while I was in Davanagere. They asked me how I could visit the place without their consent. Locked doors greeted me when I visited Bellary for evaluation work,” she alleges.Whatever the truth, HIV+ people are the ones who will suffer. The need of the hour is for funding agencies to start auditing accounts of NGOs. Such an initiative will not only ensure transparency and prevent misuse of funds.
Homosexuals increasing in Mizoram
Meanwhile, the blood samples tested on 119 gays and it was found that 10 of them have been infected with the dreaded HIV positive. According to the study, a good number of gays is much more in Aizawl than other places in Mizoram.
Despite the Delhi High Court's order on Section 377 of IPC, the Mizoram government may turn back to pages of the state archives to find out where exactly the state stands so far as homosexuality is concerned. Superintendent of then Lushai Hills HWG Cole had issued a statute under the British rule in 1909, criminalising homosexuality. After the statute was implemented in the Lushai Hills, homosexuals were often treated as outcasts. Churches and social leaders are against legalising homosexuality in Mizoram claiming that it was directly against Christianity and the Bible.
