This past 14th of September 2017, a Bangladeshi couple quietly registered their union down at the Newham Council in East London.
Our London correspondent reports that Mr Nobi Hossain and his partner Zahirul were in a long standing relationship prior to getting married, and had been living together for quite a while before eventually deciding to get married.
The marriage ceremony meanwhile was conducted in as much secrecy as possible. In fact only a few of the newly-weds closets friends were present at the marriage. We were able to get in touch with one of them, a Mr Abdullah Al Hassan, who is a close friend of the couple. He informed us that Mr Hossain and Mr Islam’s union is something to cherish, particularly if one is aware of the hardships and adversities they had to overcome to finally have their special moment. He continues that the celebrations were perhaps slightly muted because the couple had to conclude their union in such haste and secrecy. He believes it is a shame that people like Mr Hossain and Mr Islam cannot openly celebrate what is perhaps the most important day of their lives. He blames the outdated mentalities of Bangladeshi communities across the world and their reluctance to recognise equal rights for LGBT people.
It is perhaps no surprise that Mr Hossain and Mr Islam had to register their marriage in such a manner. Same sex relationships are defined as a sin in Islam of course, and widely looked down upon in Asia, especially in Bangladesh were maintaining same sex relationships is a punishable offence under the Bangladesh Penal Code 377. Indeed individual who show homosexual tendencies in Bangladesh are often maltreated, ostracized, and even subjected to various forms of hormonal treatments in a bid to ‘cure their sexual orientation’. Both Mr Islam and Mr Hossain were unavailable for comment.
It is worth noting that this particular wedding follows that of one Jahed Choudhury, a Bangladeshi, who is widely believed to be the first Muslim man to have committed to same sex marriage. He married his partner Sean Rogan on June