More empowered in the political space

Mario da Penha flies the rainbow flag symbol of diversity. Pic/ Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Mario da Penha was appointed all-India head of the All-India Professionals' Congress (AIPC) newly-minted Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Intersex Asexual (LGBTIA+) vertical recently.

Praveen Chakravarty, chairman of AIPC stated sharing some context, "The AIPC is a department within the Congress, it was formed in 2017. The founder chairman was Shashi Tharoor. I took over as chairman five months ago. This vertical is part of the revamping and this is the first time political representation will be given to the community. They will also have space for active participation to contest elections, which is a very big step."

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It was pointed out that the Congress talks about the party being liberal and progressive but it was during BJP's time that Section 377, the colonial-era law criminalising consensual sex between same-sex adults was struck down. Having said that, it is important to point out that there is a difference between the executive and judiciary. However, Chakravarty was asked why the Congress Govt. did not pick up that, ‘burning coal' (Section 377) during its tenure at the Centre.

Chakravarty said, "I cannot answer for what happened or was not done in the past. There is a time for certain things. We are the most diverse country and we must recognize and celebrate the diversity."

An interview with Thane-based Mario da Penha who spoke about queer representation in politics and whether he has seen any changes on the ground when it comes to the community or is change simply lip service.

Q: What is an LGBTQIA+ vertical? What does a representative framework for queer people actually mean?

Penha: The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Intersex Asexual (LGBTQIA+) vertical in AIPC will operate as a hub for people from the queer community. The vertical is the only such hub for queer persons within any national political party. It will represent their interests to the party organisation.

Q: When did you join the Congress party? What made you join politics?

Penha: I joined the Congress after the party was defeated in the 2019 general elections. I was always drawn to politics, but like most professionals preferred to remain outside it. The defeat in 2019 was a wake-up call to participate in active politics to defend an idea of India as inclusive and pluralistic that was fast disappearing.

Q: Did the queer vertical play a part in the recent national elections?

Penha: Along with other progressive and queer people, I campaigned on the ground for Varsha Gaikwad in Mumbai North Central and Kanhaiya Kumar in East Delhi, along with other progressive and queer people.

Q: People talk about ‘change' when it comes to queer issues. Give me one solid example from your life…

Penha: When I teach the history of gender and sexuality in colleges across India, the standards for what is unacceptable to say in classroom discussions are much higher than before. Young people will no longer allow outright homophobia or transphobia. This is a massive shift from the situation over 20 years ago when I was in University, and can be attributed to social change pushed by the queer community that has occurred during this time.

Q: You were a petitioner in the marriage equality case...

Penha: I joined the case arguing for marriage equality in 2021 with my lawyer Karuna Nundy after we were convinced that marriage was central to giving both: rights and dignity to queer couples, and them enjoying the full protection of the law.

Q: Has this vertical been made because the ‘Pink Vote' is now significant?

Penha: I don't believe that the ‘pink vote' is convincingly a significant factor yet. There isn't a single constituency in India in which our presence or absence of just our votes would sway the election one way or the other. But the issue of queer rights is important within a basket of issues that signal a party's liberal or progressive image, and that does impact how people vote on election day.

Q: We have had top politicians out of the closet in the West. Do you ever see that happening in India?

Penha: Absolutely, but for that, we have to change the way we, as a society, think about love, togetherness, the right to be who we are with pride. We have to take queerness out of the shame some now see it with.

Q: Politicians with a certain party may have to stay in the closet, as the party may support them only till a certain level… not if they move up the political ladder in seniority

Penha: Every politician has to convince people outside her immediate community to support his or her work and ambitions. Building alliances can be treacherous terrain, not just for politicians who are queer. But as I stated, we have to change our mindsets too.