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In its 2009 decision in Naz Foundation v. Government of NCT of Delhi (later affirmed in principle by…

In Naz Foundation v. Government of NCT of Delhi (2009), the Delhi High Court applied the constitutional canon of 'reading down' the scope of the impugned provision (formerly…

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In its 2009 decision in Naz Foundation v. Government of NCT of Delhi (later affirmed in principle by the Supreme Court in Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India), which canon of constitutional interpretation did the Delhi High Court employ to exclude consensual sexual acts of adults in private from the impugned penal provision while preserving the provision for non-consensual conduct and conduct involving minors?

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In Naz Foundation v. Government of NCT of Delhi (2009), the Delhi High Court applied the constitutional canon of 'reading down' the scope of the impugned provision (formerly Section 377 IPC) so as to exclude consensual sexual acts of adults in private, while keeping the provision operative for non-consensual sexual acts and acts involving minors, rather than striking down the section in its entirety. Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the colonial-era provision has been completely omitted.

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