#377letters

Anjana, Vadodara. Translation from Gujarati:

Respected sir,

I am Anju, I'm a lesbian and proud of it. When the Section 377 was repealed, when homosexuality was decriminalised, I came out of the closet and am now living with my girlfriend. When I did this, my family disowned me. I thought that even though my family does not accept me, 377 gives us legal rights to live together, safely and happily. But, what now? With the re-criminalisation of homosexuality, what will happen to people like us? Why should we live in fear? With my family disowning me, I had placed my faith and hopes in the law. Please decriminalise homosexuality once again and let people like me live in independence too. If in independent India everyone has truly gained freedom, then why are we still in chains?