New Delhi — An Indian prince who recently came out of the closet anddeclared himself “gay” has decided to throw open his palace for thelesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community of the country.
Manvendra Singh Gohil who is considered India’s only openly gay prince hasannounced that he will develop his palace into a retreat for Indians who”are shunned for their sexuality.”
“People still face a lot of pressure from their families when they comeout, being forced to marry, or thrown out of their homes. They often havenowhere to go, no means to support themselves,” Gohil told a news agency.
Gohil said he will offer rooms in his palace, medical facilities, andtraining in the English language and vocational skills to help the LGBTcommunity find jobs and earn a living.
“I am not going to have children, so I thought, why not use this spacefor a good purpose?” Gohil added while talking to the agency.
Gohil has set up a foundation called the Lakshya Trust to raise fundsto help the LGBT community.
“What Gohil is doing is a service to the community which needs the mostattention. The LGBT community is looked down on in Indian society and todaywe are happy that a gay prince is helping us organize ourselves and takecare of ourselves without depending on any authorities,” Lakshmi Selin, anLGBT activist and a transgender community leader in Delhi told Sputnik.
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Gohil has been a strong opponent of the age-old Indian laws thatcriminalize same-sex relationships. In 2013, India’s apex court hadoverturned a lower court’s verdict that set aside a law framed in 1860 anddecriminalized consensual sex among adult homosexuals.
However, earlier this week, the apex court declared it would bereconsidering its earlier verdict — a decision that was applauded by theLGBT community and human rights activists.