NEW DELHI — For over 150 years, a law called Section 377 has imposed up to a life sentence in prison on “carnal intercourse against the order of nature.” Section 377 is vaguely worded, an archaic law introduced by British colonizers with stiff, Victorian morals. Essentially, it criminalizes gay sex in India.

Over the last six months, my reporting has taken me across the country to understand how the law works officially and unofficially, as a cover for blackmailing, harassing and sexually assaulting gay and transgender Indians. In the coming days, India’s Supreme Court is expected to rule on the law’s constitutionality.

During July hearings in a packed courtroom, lawyers read from moving petitions filed by dozens of L.G.B.T. Indians who are challenging the law. In minute detail, they described the challenges of living openly here, demanding their right to love.

One evening, as hearings wound down, a wave of emotion caught me off guard at home in Delhi. I realized I had become a part of the story.

I am a gay man reporting on gay rights in India. But I am also invisible in many situations, asking the questions but never answering them. As a journalist, I struggled with my own place in the narrative. Read more via New York Times