November 17, 2021: India might get its first openly gay person as judge. The Supreme Court collegium has recommended the elevation of senior advocate Saurabh Kirpal as a judge in the Delhi high court, rejecting the Union government’s preliminary objections against his proposed elevation.

“The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on 11th November, 2021, has approved the proposal for elevation of Shri Saurabh Kirpal, advocate, as judge in the Delhi High Court,” read the collegium’s resolution uploaded on the top court’s website on Monday evening.

The collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana, picked Kirpal, 49, who was one of the leading lawyers in the landmark Navtej Singh Johar case that led to the Supreme Court decriminalising homosexuality in 2018.