Participants in a rally in the city on Thursday to celebrate the Delhi High Court verdict decriminalising adult gay relationships. (Biswarup Dutta)

Members of the gay community turned the patch of ground in front of the Academy of Fine Arts into a mela on Thursday to celebrate the Delhi High Court verdict that decriminalised homosexuality.

People spilled onto the road, shouting with joy. Some had faces painted in rainbow colours; some wore slogans such as “Just had my first legal sex” written on paper and pinned to T-shirts. Most men had kaajal-lined eyes. New arrivals were welcomed with shrieks of joy, hugs and kisses.

The verdict may not change life from the next day, but it is immense in its symbolic meaning, feels many. “It is an historic judgment, considering that in India we are so liberal behind closed doors and conservative in the open,” says designer Kallol Dutta. Anindya Hajra of the Pratyay Gender Trust, which works for the rights of the LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) community, equated the feeling with “doing unexpectedly well in an examination”.

For many, the first wave of euphoria is yet to sink in. “It’s like, ‘Thank God it has happened’,” said Pranaadhika Sinha of Elaan, an NGO that works against child sexual abuse.

The gay community hopes that the decision will change the way police behave. The police deny they harass homosexuals. “We intervene only if it is a case of rape, or sex with a minor. Or if someone is getting intimate in a public place to the discomfort of other people. But we do not harass anyone,” says Jawed Shamim, deputy commissioner, detective department.

Gay people complain of not only harassment, but police brutality. “They would either demand money or force us to have sex. There have been so many cases of so-called straight men raping a gay,” said Sahnawaz, who attended the rally. Says Pawan Dhall, gay rights activist: “Cops have taken advantage of Article 377 (of the IPC, which was read down by the court) and threatened lesbian couples to end the relationship on behalf of their parents.

But he hails the verdict. “The law is always a reflection of the social mind-set, and the fact that we are talking about sex and sexuality today shows that a change is happening.”

It is too early to grasp the finer implications of the verdict. “I am not sure whether it is applicable only in Delhi or elsewhere too,” says Bishan. But he believes that such a verdict removes an obstacle, from inside the mind.

“It’s not even as if the law was followed all the time. But there was a lot of fear surrounding it. Now, just knowing that they are on the right side of law would give people so much more confidence.”

The verdict may be liberating in another way. “Family members wouldn’t want me to dress up the way I want to. Now at least we can tell those people that it is legal, so what’s your problem?,” said Bapi, an MA student who had joined the rally. He wore kaajal.