The Supreme Court of Nepal on Monday issued an interim order directing the office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers of Nepal and other relevant ministries to establish a “transitional mechanism” to ensure the registration of marriages for “same-sex couples”.
The order was passed by Justice Til Prasad Shrestha, presiding over a single Bench, that issued the interim order on June 28, 2023.
To help the government to perform according to the directive, the court asked the government to establish a “separate register of marriages” for such couples from gender minority communities. The interim order from the Supreme Court of Nepal came as a result of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed on June 7, 2023, by Pinky Gurung (current president of Blue Diamond Society).
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The PIL had sought equality before law for the vulnerable sexual minority groups in Nepal.
“This is a very significant development as same-sex as well as third genders and their partners can register their marriages. They will be entitled to the same rights as heterosexual couples. Parliament may take a while to pass the marriage equality law but this order gives a practical solution to members of the sexual and gender minority communities who wish to register their marriage legally,” said Sunil Babu Pant, a member of Nepal’s Parliament.
