On Thursday morning, India woke up to one of the most historic and pragmatic verdicts the country’s apex court had ever passed. A five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, unanimously struck down the archaic Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code which criminalised consensual homosexual sex.

Section 377 was a law that had been contested, debated, and largely resented for longer more than a decade in India—but all of that changed as of Thursday morning. Mammoth crowds had gathered outside the Supreme Court in Delhi in anticipation of the ruling, all of them chanting, waving the Pride flag, and waiting for the judges to repeal the 156-year-old law.

At about 11:30 a m, amid cheers, hurrays, and an endless rainbow-coloured Mexican wave sweeping through the crowd, the apex court finally did away with the notorious Section 377 of the IPC, a primitive law dating back to 1862, and in doing so, provided a much-awaited ray of hope to the LGBTQIA+ community in India.

All the years of waiting, protesting, and rallying, seems to have finally paid off for the community, and Thursday’s judgment is a step forward not only for the Pride community in India but for the entire country as a whole.

“It’s finally over—I feel like I’ve been waiting more than half my life for something like this,” said Sohini, an undergraduate Political Science student. She identifies as a proud lesbian and has always been vocal about her choices. “I had almost taken for granted that I would have to relentlessly protest, rally, and march for another decade in order for this law to be dropped. now, it’s almost like coming to terms with the fact that we have finally been given the freedom we always wanted, and this is going to be a lifestyle change. Fighting and shouting for it had become so intrinsic.”

Many others like Sohini were also expecting the worst, and having to constantly face opposition for a basic freedom, had become a habit. “I feel so good…like I’m finally being acknowledged,” said a smiling Sohini.

Ramya, a PR executive based out of Bangalore, was attending an event for work on Thursday when she found out about the section being scrapped. She nearly cried upon hearing the news. “The justification that the law gave in the past—simply because we are a minority—was really belittling,” she said. “I always knew that changing mindsets would take years, but changing the law has got to be a necessary catalyst to enforce that change in thinking.”

Ramya identifies herself as bisexual and is yet to come out to certain people in her life. “As a closeted bisexual, I haven’t been confronted with the discrimination and judgement that comes along with being as a member of the LGBTQA+ community. But seeing today’s verdict and the hope it holds for me, to finally live out my truth, and to see what this judgement means to so many others who have been subjected to inferior treatment in the past, makes me emotional and reassured of my existence in this country. I cannot change what people think about my choices, but for the first time, I’m not drowning in fear.  This time,  the law is on my side.”

Ramya isn’t the only one feeling this unique sense of emancipation. People identifying as straight or heterosexual have also taken to Facebook and Twitter, posting about this progressive move by the apex court. It is important to recognise that it has taken more than a decade of struggle to achieve this judgement, and in all these years, the Pride movement has grown bigger and more vocalised, with its member unswervingly standing by each other in hope that one day, justice would prevail and they would not be treated as an outcasted and marginalised section of Indian society. 

Abhi (name changed), a closeted homosexual, who usually shies away from talking about his sexuality, said that he feels like he now owes it to the country to come out of the closet. “Of course, it will have to be rehearsed and planned meticulously. But I will do it soon. I have to—now more than ever. It would feel wrong not to, you know?”

He goes on to say that he truly feels blessed to be living in this time. “I mean, the law has changed in our favour now,” he said. “People like me have cried, have been hurt and have been constantly ejected for years. But now that the Supreme Court has decriminalised Section 377… I mean, how dare I not take advantage of that to at least honour all those people who had to go through all the nuisance before me?”

While some of his friends know that he is gay, and have always been very supportive, Abhi has—like many others—found it difficult to come out to his family members. After years of waiting, he has now finally decided to shed that fear, in light of today’s SC ruling. It is evident that the scrapping of Section 377 is changing lives all over the country. As CJI Dipak Misra said while reading out the  judgement: “No one can escape from their individuality.”

September 6, 2018, is a date that will go down in the Indian history books as the day that homosexual sex was finally—finally—decriminalised. A bench of five judges unanimously (and partially) struck down the archaic law retained from the British regime. The law still retains the illegality of bestiality (sexual intercourse with an animal) and non-consensual sexual acts.

In the past, as of 24 hours ago, Section 377 had stated that those who went against the rule of nature and engaged in voluntary carnal intercourse, with any man, woman, or animal, would be punished with life imprisonment. The section also declared consensual sexual intercourse with any person of the same gender a criminal offence, one that is punishable by law. But Thursday’s judgement is our cue to forget about the past, and live in the victorious present. 

Social media has been blowing up and excitement is running high throughout the country, being trumped only by the emotion of hope that can be clearly seen as the massive crowds awaiting the judgement broke down in tears, hugging each other as the ruling came in their favour. Hope: that is the legal stamp which will aid in wiping out discrimination on the basis of sexuality. Thursday’s judgement is a wake-up call for the bigotry that was reigning for so long, but more importantly, now there is a profound sense of freedom prevailing in the air—one that is a very much welcomed byproduct of this ruling.

You can read the entire Supreme Court judgement here.