Gay community stages rally in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, June 28 (ANI): People belonging to sexual minorities staged a rally in Bhubaneswar demanding their rights.

Gays, lesbians, transgender and bisexuals put up plays and also took to streets to participate in the 'Rainbow Pride Walk' to make people aware about their plight.

"The reason for organising this rally is that people look down upon us in the society. There is a stigma attached to sexual minorities in our society. We want to live with respect," said Tulu.

Members of the sexual minority community said they wanted the society to treat them with respect and wanted equal rights like any other citizen.

"The purpose is to make people aware that the society in India, in Orissa, in Bhubaneswar, - wherever lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender are, - every where, they have equal rights like any other citizen of this country. India is a democratic country. We have the right to express our problems, our concerns to larger society and we expect the civil society, the private sector and even the NGO sector to understand our problems better," said Pawan Dhall, organiser of the march.

The 'Rainbow Pride Walk' held annually aims to draw sexual orientation, gender identity and associated sexual health issues into the larger human rights movement in the country.

It draws its inspiration from the Stonewall Riots held in New York, USA in June 1969.

The riots occurred as a mark of protest by sexual minorities in the US against police harassment that was a daily feature of their lives in those days and sparked off what can be said to be the modern movement for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights in the West. (ANI)