The Supreme court scrapped section 377 of IPC which criminalized homosexuality in September 2018. Ever since several lovebirds have managed to muster up the courage to openly love whoever they want to irrespective of their gender!
Dutee Chand, the ace Indian sprinter is also one of them! She recently revealed that she has found her soulmate and opened up about her same-sex relationship with her 19-year-old partner.
“My partner agreed that we make this public and face whatever repercussions it may have. I believe in individual freedom and the right to decide how and with whom I will live my life,” Dutee told The Hindu.
Without naming her soulmate, Dutee talked in details about her partner and said, “I am having a relationship with a 19-year-old woman from my village for the past five years. She is studying B.A. second year in a Bhubaneswar college. She is a relative of mine and whenever I come home, I spend time with her.”
Dutee also plans to settle down with her love, “She is a kind of soul-mate for me and I want to settle down with her in future,” she said.
Dutee doesn’t want to be judged for her love preferences, obviously! She said, “I have always believed that everyone should have the freedom to love. There is no greater emotion than love and it should not be denied. The Supreme Court of India has also struck down the old law. I believe nobody has the right to judge me as an athlete because of my decision to be with who I want. It is a personal decision, which should be respected. I will continue to strive to win medals for India at international meets,” reports Indian Express.
But the journey by far hasn’t been a cakewalk for Dutee as she had to face opposition from her family members. “My eldest sister kind of wields power and authority in my family. She has thrown out my elder brother from home because she does not like his wife. She has threatened me that the same will happen to me. But I am also an adult who has individual freedom. So I decided to go ahead with this and make it public,” she said.
“My eldest sister feels that my partner is interested in my property. She has told me that she will send me to jail for having this relationship, she added.
Not sure about her family but Dutee is receiving immense support from fans for her bold move:
What an incredible news. More power to you @DuteeChand 🙌🏻👏🏻 https://t.co/x2rTgFIPmk
— TARUKA (@TarukaSrivastav) May 19, 2019
Wow. The coming out story Indian sports deserved. More power to you, Dutee.https://t.co/agY3gwQCw4
— Nevin (@nevinthomas) May 19, 2019
So courageous of her to be open about this. More power and strength to you! Setting an example for others 👏 #DuteeChand https://t.co/9oyclEvW6w
— Asavari (@assavery21) May 19, 2019
First Indian sportswoman to openly state she is in a same-sex relationship. Trust women to be bolder in 21st century! https://t.co/RDbPudaCG5
— Devdutt Pattanaik (@devduttmyth) May 19, 2019
https://twitter.com/raju/status/1129930246780792833
Courage: Dutee Chand says she’s in same-sex relationship with soulmate | Sports News, The Indian Express https://t.co/2Hyoe4tGBZ via @IndianExpress
— Menaka Guruswamy (@MenakaGuruswamy) May 19, 2019
Dutee Chand, the ace sprinter has brought India 2 silver medals in the Asian Games. She was, however, banned for one year by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in 2014 for having higher testosterone (male sex hormone) level than permissible. After fighting her case for a year, Dutee, Dutee was given a clean chit by the court and joined back to bring laurels to our nation.
Love has no religion, color or gender. Period. We appreciate Dutee for inspiring and empowering women to be unapologetically vocal about their love choices.
You go, girl!