Dutee Chand faces family's ire after revealing her same-sex relationship

BHUBANESWAR/KENDRAPADA: India’s fastest woman Dutee Chand proved once again why she is a trailblazer when she became the first Indian sportsperson to come out of the closet. On Sunday, the 23-year-old revealed that she has been in a same-sex relationship with a girl from her village for the past three years.
Dutee, who was at the centre of a global gender row and won her case against the International Association of Athletics Federations's (IAAF) hyperandrogenism rule, faces a fresh obstacle in the form of her family who is objecting to her being in the same-sex relationship.
“We are happy together. As adults, we have every right to take our own decision. I am not doing anything that is illegal,” Dutee had said from her training base in Hyderabad. “I know the challenges I am going to face because of my relationship with a girl but I am determined to settle down with her.”
Dutee admitted that she had initially feared social ostracism, but the landmark Supreme Court judgement decriminalising gay sex gave her the courage to speak out.
“I believe in individual freedom and right to decide how and with whom I will live my life,” she said.
Her family in Odisha’s Kendrapada district, however, is far from happy with the development.
“We are shocked to know that Dutee is going to marry a girl. We are totally against this lesbian relationship,” mother Akhuji Chand said. She also accused her daughter of neglecting the family and not sharing the prize money earned at various meets.
“She got Rs 3 crore as reward after her Asian Games feat. We told her many times to give some of it to us as, we have six daughters, but she did not. We weave to earn a living,” Akhuji added.
Dutee’s elder sister, Saraswati, herself a former athlete, said, “She is being misguided by some persons, including the parents of the girl. They want to take control of her money.”
Dutee’s partner, who is a year younger to her and a resident of Chaka Gopalpur village in Jajpur district, reiterated the couple’s intention to settle down.
“We wanted to show the society that there is nothing wrong with living with a partner of the same sex. Both of us rejoiced when the Supreme Court scrapped Section 377 last year,” said the woman, who did not wish to be named.
Last September, while the Supreme Court abolished the colonial-era law making gay relationships no longer a criminal offence, same-sex marriages continue to remain a legal hurdle.
Dutee’s decision to come out as homosexual, however, has found support among both sportspersons and activists working for LGBTQ rights. Support also poured in for the couple on social media.
Aishwarya Ritupurna Pradhan, a transgender civil servant in Odisha, said it needed a lot of courage for a person from a conservative society to announce a same-sex relationship.
“I congratulate Dutee for being a brave girl. It is her constitutional right to live with whosoever she wants to. Nobody should judge her for this,” Aishwarya said. She was echoed by transgender activist Meera Parida.