Ace sprinter Dutee Chand was disheartened by the verdict of the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage.

The apex court refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriage.

Dutee told The Telegraph: “I am in love with a girl who hails from my village. We have been in a relationship for the last eight years. Following the Supreme Court’s refusal to give legal validation to same-sex marriage, we need to wait for another two to three years. The Supreme Court has left it to the legislature or Parliament to take a call on the issue.”

Dutee said: “As the election is approaching, Parliament will not be able to deliberate on the issue immediately. But once a new government is formed, the issue will certainly be taken up for discussion as it’s going to affect lakhs of people like me.”

The sprinter said: “I can marry my sweetheart... in a temple. But I cannot get a marriage certificate in a court of law. To travel with your spouse to a foreign country, you need to have a marriage certificate... We will wait till the date Parliament takes a stand on the issue and the apex court pronounced same-sex marriage as a legal one...”

She added: “The Supreme Court’s verdict in 2018 had given me a ray of hope. It struck down section 377 of the Indian Penal Code and decriminalised the same-sex relationship between consenting adults. Now this new verdict has raised another question. It seems we are going back to those old days. If a widow can marry and live happily, why shouldn’t we? We do have the right to dignity to live. It should get the legal sanctions.”