The Jamiat-Ulama-i-Hind on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that arguments made by petitioners’ counsel that the top court should make a declaration about legal validation for same-sex marriage as Parliament is not likely to do anything about it will be a “dangerous proposition”.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Jamiat, submitted before a five-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud that he was “very worried” at the beginning of the hearing when the petitioners’ side said that Parliament is not going to do anything about it so the court should make a declaration.

He said it would be a wrong step forward if there were to be a declaration on the premise that Parliament is not likely to pass a law on same-sex union and emphasised that any law of this nature requires public discourse, which includes discourse within and outside parliament.

“I say that it is a very dangerous route to take,” Sibal contended before the bench, which also comprises Justices S.K. Kaul, S.R. Bhat, P.S. Narasimha and Hima Kohli.

Sibal said after the declaration by the court there will be no scope for debate in the Parliament — one that same-sex union is a fundamental right; two, it has to be recognised.

However, the top court said the Parliament can overrule a declaration. Sibal replied that “once your lordships have declared, the Parliament can’t overrule it. I hope that stage has not come for Parliament to overrule what your lordships decide.”

He said the court is now deciding two things — sexual unions and recognition by the state of sexual unions.

Sibal said if question arises whether that sexual union is akin to a marriage and, if yes, is it founded in any provision of the Constitution, and for it to result in certain rights, it can only be done through recognition by the state through legislation, and stressed that there can’t be a declaration from the court.

The top court observed that it takes Sibal’s point that “don’t go into an area where you declare a right to marry.”

Sibal, in the context of acceptance, said it is also at three levels – first by two individuals themselves, then by the family, and thereafter by the society. He argued that nobody can dispute the fact that same-sex couples have a separate sexual identity and even the government has not disputed it.

The top court will continue to hear a batch of petitions seeking legal sanction for same sex marriages on Wednesday.

London: People with post-viral fatigue after suffering from Covid-19 can benefit from cognitive behavioural therapy, resulting in less fatigue and concentration problems, suggests a study.

After a Covid infection, a substantial number of patients report persisting symptoms. This is often known as long-Covid or Post-Covid Syndrome and the most common symptom is severe and debilitating fatigue.

The study, led by a team from University Medical Center (UMC) Amsterdam and Radboud in the Netherlands found that after behavioural therapy, Covid patients not only had less symptoms but also functioned better both physically and socially.

The improvements persisted even after six months, said lead researcher, Hans Knoop, Professor of Medical Psychology at Amsterdam UMC.

The findings are published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

In the study, patients who received cognitive behavioural therapy were compared with patients who received care as usual.

Normal care often consisted of supervision by their general practitioner or specialist, physiotherapy and/or occupational therapy.

Cognitive behavioural therapy for patients with persistent fatigue after Covid-19 focused on reducing fatigue by dealing with the symptoms differently.

“Together with patients, we looked, for example, at how they can improve their sleep-wake rhythm. We also helped them become more active again with small, safe steps. For example, by going for short walks,” Knoop said.

Cognitive behavioural therapy showed clear results for these patients. Most participants experienced significantly less fatigue and improved concentration after treatment.

They also made significant progress socially and physically. The results also proved to be stable over time. After six months, the differences, compared with those received regular care, were still present.

“Cognitive behavioural therapy also appears to be a safe treatment. Our research shows that the symptoms did not worsen, and new symptoms arose less often,” Knoop noted.

The researchers emphasise that the fact that behavioural therapy can help does not mean that the cause of the symptoms is psychological. Furthermore, not everyone benefits from behavioural therapy.

It is therefore very important to continue to search for other effective treatments and the physical causes of the post-Covid syndrome, the team said.

A MiG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed on a house in Bahlol Nagar in Hanumangarh district of Rajasthan on Monday morning killing persons.

The aircraft had got airborne for a routine operational training sortie from the Air Force Station at Suratgarh. Soon thereafter, the pilot experienced an onboard emergency, following which he attempted to recover the aircraft as per existing procedures. Having failed to do so, he initiated an ejection, sustaining minor injuries in the process. The pilot was recovered from about 25 kilometres North East of Suratgarh base, the Ministry of Defence said.

A Court of Inquiry has been constituted to ascertain the cause of the accident., the Ministry added.