SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGE

MOOTCOURTSOCIETY

LEGALRIGHTSOF
TRANSGENDERININDI
A

[
4.08.
19]
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 

 
  
LEGALRI
GHTSOFTRANSGENDERI
NINDI
A
Team Code:
[
012]

ABSTRACT:
Tr ansgendersar er ef
err
edt oast het hi
rdgenderoft heIndianSoci ety I
.“ti
sther ightof
ev eryHumanBei ngt ochooset heirgender”,iti
ssai dingr ant
ingr i
ghtstot hosewho
i
dent if
ythemsel v
esasnei t
hermal enorf emale.Accordingt ooneest i
mate,Indiahas
aboutt womi l
liont r
ansgenderpeopl e.
InI ndi
a,acommont er
m usedt odescr i
bet r
ansgenderpeopl e,t r
anssexuals,cr oss-
dressers,eunuchsandt ransvestit
esis‘Hijr
a’.Thetransgenderandt heirri
ghtsfallunder
the Section 377 ofThe I ndian PenalCode,1860 and The Ri ghts ofThe LGQBT
Communi ty
.
Int hispaper ,wewi lltalkaboutt heLegalRi ghtsoft ransgenderpeopl ei nI ndia,
criminali
zati
onandde- cr
iminalizati
onoft heSection377ofTheI ndianPenalCode, 1860
(IPC)andal sot herecentTransbi l
lsof2016.

KEYWORDS:
Sect
ion377,
LGBTQCommuni
ty,
TransgenderRi
ght
s,I
PC,
Homosexual
i
ty.

I
NTRODUCTI
ON:

Secti
on 377 ofThe I ndian PenalCode was a sect ion ofThe I ndian PenalCode
i
ntroducedin1861dur ingtheBr it
ishrul
eofI ndi
a.Model ledont heBuggeryActof1533,
i
tmakessexual act
ivi
ti
es"agai nsttheorderofnature"i
llegal
.On6Sept ember2018, The
Supreme Cour tofI ndiar uled thatthe appli
cation ofSect i
on 377 to consensual
homosexualsexbet ween adul t
s was unconst i
tuti
onal,"ir
rational
,indefensi
ble and
manifestl
yarbit
rary"
,butthatSect ion377r emainsi nforcerelatingt
osexwi t
hmi nors,
non-consensualsexualact
s, andbest i
ali
ty.

InJanuary2018,TheSupremeCour tagr
eedtohearapeti
tiontorevi
sitthe2013Naz
Foundati
onJudgment .On6Sept ember2018,theCourtr
uledunanimouslyinNavtej
SinghJoharv .Uni
onofI ndi
at hatSecti
on377wasunconst it
uti
onal"insof arasit
cri
minal
isesconsensual
sexualconductbetweenadul
tsoft
hesamesex" .

● WhySect
ion377wascr
imi
nal
i
zesi
nIndi
a? 

Port
ionsofthesect i
onwer efir
ststr
uckdownasunconst i
tut
ionalwit
hrespecttogay
sexbyTheDel hiHighCour tinJuly2009.Thatjudgementwasov er
tur
nedbyt he
SupremeCourtofI ndia(SC)on11December2013i nSureshKumarKoushalv s.Naz
Foundati
on.TheCour theldthatamendi
ngorrepeali
ngsecti
on377shoul dbeamat t
er
l
efttoParli
ament,nott hejudi
ciar
y.On6February2016,athree-
memberbenchoft he
Courtrevi
ewedcur ati
vepet i
ti
onssubmittedbytheNazFoundat ionandot her
s,and
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

decidedthattheywouldber evi
ewedbyaf ive-memberconst it
uti
onalbench.On24
August2017,TheSupr emeCour tupheldther i
ghttopr i
vacyasaf undamentalri
ght
undertheConstitut
ioninthelandmar kPuttuswamyj udgement.TheCour talsocal
led
forequalit
y and condemned di scri
minat
ion,st ated thatthe protecti
on ofsexual
ori
entat
ionliesatthecoreoft hef undamentalr i
ghtsandt hattheri
ght softheLGBT
populat
ionar erealandf oundedonconst it
utionaldoctri
ne.[
9]Thisj udgementwas
bel
ievedtoimplytheunconsti
tuti
onalit
yofsection377.

● Sur
eshKumarKoushal
andNAZFoundat
ion(
cit
ati
on)

SureshKumarKoushalandanot herv.NAZFoundat ionandothersi sa2013casei n

which a 2 j udge Supr eme Cour tbench consi st
ing ofG.S.Si nghv iand S.J.
Mukhopadhay aov er
turnedTheDel hiHi
ghCour tcaseNazFoundat ionv .Gov t
.ofNCTof
DelhiandreinstatedSect ion377ofTheI ndianPenalCode.TheSupr emeCour tofIndi
a
decidedtor evi
sitthisjudgementaf t
erseveralcurati
vepeti
ti
onswer ef il
edagai nsti
t,i
n
2017.Ther ebyin2018,Nav t
ejSi
nghJoharv .Uni onofIndi
a,a5j udgebenchofThe
SupremeCour tov er
turnedt hisj
udgement,decri
mi nali
zi
nghomosexual i
ty.Butporti
ons
ofSection377r elat
ingt osexwi thminors,non-consensualsexualact ssuchasr ape,
andbest i
ali
tyremai ninfor ce.

Thej udgesstatedt hat"

ami ni
sculefracti
onofthecountry'
spopulat
ionconst
itut
es
l
esbians,gays,bi sexual
s ortransgender"and thatThe Hon’bl
e High Cour
thad
err
oneouslyrel
ieduponi nter
nat
ionalpr s“
ecedent i
nitsanxi
etytoprot
ecttheso-
call
ed
ri
ghtsofLGBTper sons”.

On11December2013,TheSupremeCour tofIndi
asetasi
det he2009judgementgiv
en
byTheDel
hiHighCourtst
ati
ngthatjudi
ciali
nterv
enti
onwasnotr equi
redinthi
sissue.
Thi
sineffectdecr
imi
nali
zedsexualint
ercourse"agai
nsttheor derofnatur
e".Inits
j
udgmentTheSupremeCourtBenchofJust i
cesG.S.SinghviandS.J.Mukhopadhay a
st
ated—

"
Invi
ewoftheabov edi
scussi
on, wehol
dt hatSect
ion377I
PCdoesnotsuff
erf
rom t
he
vi
ceofunconst
it
uti
onali
tyandt hedecl
arati
onmadebyt heDi
vi
sionBenchoft
heHigh
Cour
tisl
egal
lyunsust
ainabl
e."

Boththejudgeshowev ernotedthattheParl
i
ament sshoulddebateanddeci
deont he
matter
.Abenchofj ust i
cesupheldtheconstit
uti
onalval
idi
tyofSecti
on377ofI ndian
PenalCodet hatmakesanalsexapuni shableoffense.Secti
on377also included
consensualsexual
act sofadult
ssuchasor alandanalsexinpri
vatewhi
chweretreated
asunnaturalandpunishable.

I
nal andmarkjudgementf
ortheLGBTcommunit
yint
hecount
ry,t
heSupr
emeCour
t
l
i
ftedacoloni
al-
erabanongaysexonThur
sday

Afive-
judgeconst
it
utionbenchheadedbyChi efJusti
ceDipakMisrahadr eser
vedit
s
ver
dictonJuly17afterhearingvariousstakehol
dersforf
ourdays,incl
udi
nggayr i
ght
s
act
ivi
sts.Besi
des the CJI,t he bench al
so comprised j
ust
ices R F Nar
iman,A M
Khanwilkar
,DYChandr achudandI nduMalhotra.
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

TheCent r
e,whi
chhadiniti
all
ysoughtadj
ournmentforfi
li
ngitsr
esponsetot
hepetit
ions,
hadlaterlef
ttothewisdom ofthecourttheissueoflegal
it
yofthepenalprov
isi
onon
theaspectsofcr
iminal
isi
ngconsensualunnat
uralsexbetweentwoconsent
ingadul
ts.

TheCent rehadsaidt hattheotheraspectsoft hepenalpr

ovi
siondealingwi
thmi nors
andani malsshouldbeal lowedt oremainint hestatut
ebook.Sect i
on377r efer
st o
'
unnaturaloff
ences'andsay swhoev ervol
untaril
yhascarnalinter
courseagainstthe
orderofnaturewi t
hanyman,womanorani mal ,shal
lbepunishedwithimpri
sonment
forli
fe,orwithimprisonmentofeitherdescri
ptionforaterm whichmayextendt o10
years,andshall
alsobel i
abletopayaf i
ne.

● WHATI
SSECTI
ON377?

Section377ref
erst o'unnaturaloffences'andsay swhoevervol
untar
il
yhascar nal
i
ntercour
seagainsttheor derofnat ur
ewi thanyman,womanorani mal,shal
lbe
punishedwi
thimprisonmentf orli
fe,orwi t
himpr i
sonmentofei
therdescr
ipti
onfora
ter
m whichmayextendto10y ear
s,andshallalsobeli
abl
etopayafine.

Del
hiHC'
s2009v
erdi
ct:

TheissueofSecti
on377wasf i
rstraisedbyNGONaazFoundat i
on,whichhadi
n2001
approachedtheDelhiHighCour twhi chhaddecr i
minal
i
sedsexbet weenconsent
ing
adul
tsoft he same genderbyhol ding t
he penalprovi
sion as" i
l
legal
".Thi
s2009
j
udgementoft hehighcourtwasov ertur
nedi n2013bytheapexcour twhi
chhadalso
di
smi ssedtherevi
ew pleaagainstwhi cht hecurati
vepetit
ionswer efil
edwhichis
pending.

Theapexcourthadcommencedt heheari
ngont hefr
eshwri
tpetiti
onschal
l
engingr
e-
cri
minal
i
sati
onofconsensualgaysexbetweent woadult
s,r
eject
ingtheCentr
e'spl
ea
seeki
ngpost
ponementoftheproceedi
ngsbyfourweeks.

Ithadin2013restoredthecri
minal
ityoft
hesexualr
elationshipbetweenper
sonsofthe
samesex,af t
ertheDelhiHighCourthaddecri
minal
isedi ti
n2009.Att heoutsetoft
he
heari
ng,thefi
ve-
judgebenchonJul y10hadmadei tclearthatitwasnotgoingintot
he
curat
ivepeti
ti
onsandwoul dadjudi
cateonthef
reshwritpetit
ionsinthematt
er.

SECTI
ON377andCHI
LDABUSE:

Chil
d right
s activi
sts had cr i
ti
cised t
he Delhi HC v
erdi
ct of de-cr
imi
nali
sing
homosexuali
tyont hegroundt hatSecti
on377wasneededt otackl
ecasesofchi l
d
abuse.Howev er
,theenactmentoft heProt
ect
ionofChil
drenfr
om SexualOffences
(POCSO)Act2012r emovedt heneedt ouseSection377asPOCSO i smorechi l
d-
fri
endl
yandmuchmor estr
ingent.

I
MPLI
CATI
ONSFORHETEROSEXUALS:

Secti
on377al
soincl
udedconsensualsexualact
sofadult
ssuchasor
alandanalsexi
n
pri
vatewhi
chwer
et r
eat
edasunnat ur
alandpunishabl
e.
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

THEPETI
TIONERS:

Theapexcourthear
dt hewritpeti
ti
onsf i
l
edbydancerNavtejJauhar
,jour
nal
istSunil
Mehra,ChefRi
tuDal
mi a,Hot
eli
ersAmanNat handKeshavSuriandbusi
nessexecuti
ve
AyeshaKapurand20formerandcurrentst
udent
soft
heIITs.

● MEANI
NGOFTHETERM TRANSGENDERI
NINDI
A:

 
Tr ansgenderpeopl ehav eagenderi dentit
yorgenderexpr essionthatdi f
fersfr om their
assignedsex.Somet ransgenderpeopl ewhodesi remedi calassistancet ot ransition
from onesext oanot heri denti
fyast r
anssexual.Transgender– of tenshor tenedas
trans–i salsoanumbr el l
aterm: i
naddi t
iontoincludi
ngpeopl ewhosegenderi dent i
tyis
theopposi teoftheirassi gnedsex( transmenandt ranswomen) ,i
tmayi ncl
udepeopl e
who ar e notexcl usively mascul i
ne orf emini
ne ( peopl
e who ar e non- binary or
gender queer,incl
udi ng bi gender,pangender ,gender f l
uid).Ot her definitions of
transgenderalsoi ncludepeopl ewhobel ongtoat hirdgender,orel seconcept ualize
transgenderpeopleasat hirdgender.Thetermt r
ansgendermaybedef inedver ybr oadly
toincludecross-dr
esser s.

Beingt ransgenderisindependentofsexualor ientat

ion:t
ransgenderpeoplemayi denti
fy
ashet erosexual
,homosexual ,bisexual,asexual,ormaydecl i
net olabeltheirsexual
ori
ent ati
on.Thet er
m t ransgenderi salso disti
nguished from int
ersex,at erm that
describespeopl ebornwi t
hphy sicalsexchar acter
isti
cs"thatdonotf ittypi
calbinary
notionsofmal eorfemal ebodies”.Theopposi teoft r
ansgenderisci sgender,which
describesper sonswhosegenderi dent
ityorexpressionmat chesthei
rassignedsex.[13]

Thedegr eet owhi chindividualsf eelgenuine,aut henti

c,andcomf or
tabl
ewi thi
nt hei
r
exter
nalappear anceandacceptt hei
rgenui nei dentit
yhasbeencal ledtransgender
congruence.[14]Manyt ransgenderpeopl eexper iencegenderdy sphor i
a,andsomeseek
medicaltreatment ssuchashor moner eplacementt herapy,sexreassignmentsur gery
,
orpsy chotherapy.[
15]Notal lt
ransgenderpeopl edesi retheset reatments,andsome
cannotunder got hem forfinancialormedi calreasons.Manyt ransgenderpeoplef ace
discr
imination int he workplace[17]and i n accessi ng publi
caccommodat i
onsand
healt
hcar e.Inmanypl acest heyarenotl egallyprotectedfrom discri
minati
on.

● LEGALRI
GHTSOFTRANSGENDERSI
NINDI
A. 

TheRi ghtsofTransgenderPersonsBil
l,2014isaproposedActoft hePar
li
amentof
I
ndiawhi chseekstoendt hediscri
minati
onfacedbytransgenderpeoplei
nIndia.The
Bil
lwaspassedbyt heupperhouseRajyaSabhaon24Apr i
l2015.Itwasint
roducedin
thelowerhouseLokSabhaon26Febr uary2016.

TheBil
lwasi ntr
oducedi ntheRajyaSabhabyDr avi
daMunnet raKazhagam (DMK)
l
eaderTir
uchiSi vaasapr i
vat
emember 'sbil
l.
[1]SomeBhar ati
yaJanataPart
y( BJP)
l
eader
si ni
tiall
yt r
ied to conv
ince Si
vat o wi
thdraw the bi
llcit
ing anomal
i
es and
i
mpracti
calclauses.Mini
sterofSoci
alJust
iceandEmpower mentThawarChandGehl ot
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

saidthatsomecl ausesoft hebil

lwer eimpracti
calandt oocompl i
cated.Hepromised
futurepol
ici
estobenef i
ttransgenderpeople,whil
er equesti
ngtheBilltobewit
hdrawn.
Mukht arAbbasNaqv i,Minist
erofSt at
ef orParli
ament aryAff
air
s,andP.J.Kur i
enof
IndianNati
onalCongress(INC)alsomadesi milarrequests.
[3]

Howev er ,Sivar efused to wi t

hdr aw t he bi ll
.He ar gued that29 nat i
ons had l aws
regarding t r
ansgenderr i
ghts.He poi nted outt hatthere wer e allegedly 450, 000
transgenderpeopl ei nIndia,whi l
et heact ualnumbermaybear ound20, 00,000.They
hadt her i
ghtt ov ote,butfaceddi scri
mi nat ioni nthei
rday -
to-dayl i
fe.Ther ul
ing-party
member sr espondedt otheini t
ialvoicev otewi thanegat i
ve.Thisf orcedSi vat ocal lfor
adi vi
sionoft hehouse.Fi nanceMi nisterAr unJai tl
eydiscouragedi t.[
3]Jai tl
eysai dt hat
Sivawi thdrawt hebi llandwai tf orthepol i
ci espr omisedbyGehl otort hehouseshoul d
supportt hebi l
l.
[4]Thebi l
lwasunani mousl ypassedon24Apr i
l2015i ntheRaj y
aSabha,
wher et heOpposi tionhadt hemaj oritybutal sor eceiv
edsuppor tfrom t het r
easur y
bench.[3]Themov ewaswel comedbyLGBT- right
sact i
vistSimr anShai kh.TheBi llis
consider edhi stori
casf orbei ngt hef irstpr i
vatemember '
sbi l
lt obepassedbyany
housei n36y earsandbyRaj yaSabhai n45y ears.Usually,
thebi l
lsar ewi t
hdr awnaf tera
debateandt hegov ernment'
sr esponse.Unt i
lthen,only16pr ivatemember '
sbi ll
shad
beenpassedsi nce1947.

On26Febr uary2016,thebil
lwasintroducedi
nt heLokSabhafordebat
ebyBijuJanata
Dal( BJD)leaderBai j
ayantPanda.Panda ar gued t
hatthe bil
lwould hel
p extend
constit
uti
onalri
ghtsandendt hediscri
minat
ionagainsttr
ansgenderpeopl
e,al
lowing
them tolivealif
eofdi gnit
y.BJPl eaderJagdambikaPalalsosupportedendi
ngt he
discr
iminati
onagainsttr
ansgenderpeople.

Clauses21and22ofChapt erVaimt or eser

ve2%oft heseat sinpr i
mar y,secondar y
andhi ghereducationinstit
uti
onsfundedbyt hegov ernment ,andingov ernmentj obs.
TheCl ause24f orChapterVmandat esfor mat
ionofspeci alemploymentexchangesf or
tr
ansgenderpeopl e.TheChapt erVIIdetail
sthef ormat ionofnat i
onalandst at
e-l
ev els
commi ssionfort r
ansgenderpeople.TheChapt erVI IIdet ai
lstheformat i
onofspeci al
tr
ansgenderr ights courts.The Clause 11 ofChapt erI Ispecif
ies the rightofa
tr
ansgenderchi ldtoahomeandi mposescondi tionsf orfostercare.TheChapt erIX
detai
lst heoffensesandpenal t
ies.Themaxi mum penal t
yforhat espeechagai nst
tr
ansgenderpeopl ein1y earimpr
isonmentwi t
hf i
ne.

● WHOI
SATRANSGENDER?

Transgenderpeopl ear etheonewhof eelssexuallyoppositeaccor di

ngt otheirbody
structur
eorgeni t
als.Itmeanssomeonewhosegenderdi ffer
entiatesfrom t
heonet hey
hadwhent heywer ebor n,theymayi dent i
fythem asmal eorf emale,ortheymayf eel
that neither labelf i
tst hem. Assi gning someone’s sex i s based on bi ology,
chromosomes,anat omyandhor mones.Butaper son’
sgenderi denti
tytheinnersense
ofbei ngmal e,femal eorbot h,doesn’
tal waysmatchtheirbiology.Transgenderpeople
sayt heywer eassignedasext hatisn’
ttruetowhot heyare.
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

● NATI
ONALLEGALSERVI
CESAUTHORI
TYVSUNI
ONOFI
NDI
A:

“Justi
ceSi kri
”def i
nedi nhisconcurr
ingjudgmentasf ollowsthatthet er
mt ransgender
i
sder ivedf r
om t wowor dsnamely,“
trans”and“ gender” .For
meri saLat i
nwor dwhich
means“ across”or“ beyond”.Thegr ammat i
calmeani ngoft ransgenderther ef
oreis
acrossorbey ondgender .Theter
mt ransgenderalsor eferstoaper sonwhosegender
i
dent i
tyorexpr ession does notconf orm tot he soci alexpectati
ons fort heirsex
assignedatt heirbir
thandbecauseofwhi cht heyarelookeddownbyt hesoci ety
.They
understandt hemsel vesasbel ongi
ngt otheot hersexf rom whattheirgenitalswould
suggest .

TheUni tedSt atesSupr emeCour thasdef i

nedt ransgenderas:“ arar
epsy chi
at ri
st
disorderi nwhi chaper sonfeelsper sistentuncomf ortableabouthi sorheranat omi cal
sexandwhot ypical
l
yseeksmedi caltreatment,i
ncludinghor monalt her
apyandsur gery,
tobr ingaboutaper manentsexchange. ”Therei sof tenconf usionbetweencer tain
termst hati ssexualor i
entati
onandgenderi denti
tydescr ibi
ngat ransgendersot ocl ear
outt hisdifference“Just i
ceRadhakr i
shnan”hasexpr essedhi sviewsundert heheadof
Arti
cle14whi legivi
ngr ighttot r
ansgenderast hi
rdgenderandl aiddownt hat“ Gender
Identity
”r eferst oanindi vi
dual’
ssel f-identi
fi
cati
onasaman,woman,t r
ansgender ,or
anyot heri dentif
iedcategorywher eassexualor i
entation,ont heotherhand,referstoan
i
ndiv i
dual endur i
ngphy sical
,romant icand/ oremotional attr
acti
ont osomeot herper son,
sexualor ientationincludest ransgenderandt heirsexualor i
entati
onmayormaynot
duringoraf t
ergendert ransmission.

I
nI ndi
a,thet r
ansgendercommuni tycompr i
sesofHijras,eunuchs,Kothi
s,Ar avanis,
Jogappas,Shiv-
Shaktis,et
cwiththeirdi
ffer
entcul
tur
eandi denti
ti
es.Toaddmor eof
detai
ltot hese ty
pes,Hi j
rasaret hose who ar
e bi
ologicall
ymal e and r
ejectt heir
masculi
nei denti
tyeitheraswomen ornotmen;and t heot herdif
fer
entt ypesof
tr
ansgenderindif
ferentpart
softhecountry.

● NEEDOFRECOGNI
TIONASA“
THI
RDGENDER”
:

Asdiscussedear l
ierTr ansgenderi sanumbr el
lat erm andcov er
smanyt ypesofpeopl e
i
ncludinggay ,lesbian,bi sexual,transsexual,i
nt ersex,hij
ras,kot hi
sandmanyot hers.
Nowbecauseoft echnol ogyadv ancementmanyt r
ansgenderpeopl ereassigntheirsex
andchanget heirphy sical bodyandt akestepstol ivethei
rlivesast hesext heydesi r
eto
beandchanget heirphy sicalbodyf rom male-to-femaleorf rom femal e-
to-maleast hey
desir
et hroughSexualReassi gnmentSur gery( SRS)t oaltert heirbodyt or ef
lecttheir
genderi dent
it
y.Ther efore,theapexcour tbroadenst het ermt ransgendert oi ncl
ude
both‘ pre-
operative’,‘post -
operative’and ‘non- operati
ve’t ranssexuals who st rongly
i
dentif
ywi thpersonsoft heopposi t
esex.

LaxmiNar ayan Tripathyin one ofhisj udgmentsay sthatnon-

recogni
ti
on oft he
i
dentit
iesifHi jr
a,aTGcommuni tyasathi r
dgender ,deni
esthem t
her i
ghttoequalit
y
underAr t
icle14oft heConst
itut
ionandv i
olatesther i
ghtsguar
ant
eedunderAr t
icle21
oftheConst i
tuti
onofI ndi
a.Theneedt oident i
fytr
ansgendersasat hi
rdgenderarose
becauseoft hest i
gmai nt
hesocietyr
elat
ingt othei
rorient
ati
onandtheywereforcedto
recognize themselves as eit
hermal e orf emale because ofonlytwo gender sin
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

exist ence,t heywer enotonl yl ookeddownbywhatwecal lther i

ghtt hi
nkingmember s
oft hesoci etybutwer eal sodepr i
vedofal ltheirfundament alright sandt ol i
vewi th
digni tyasaci ti
zenoft hecount ry.Ev ent hought hehi j
rasar einexi stencesi ncet he
anci entt imest heyar estil
lnotaccept edasapar toft hesoci et y.Theyf oll
ow t heir
traditionandcul t
ureandhav est rongsoci altieswi ththei rcommuni ti
es.TheHi j
rasor
eunuchsar ef eared,l
ookeddownupon, andsexual l
yexpl oi t
edast heyhav eal waysliv ed
ont hef ri
ngeoft hesoci et
yandhav eint egratedi ntoit.Theyhav eal way sbeensubj ect
tosoci alstigma, segregati
on, ri
dicule,har assment ,apat hyandexpl oitati
onf orcentur ies
j
ustbecauset heydonoti dentifyasei theroft hesexesandar econsi der edasqueer s, a
situat i
onoft heirnaturalbeingnessandgenderdy sphor ia,ov erwhi cht heyhav eno
cont rol.Ev enaf terthiscondi t
ion,few peopl ehav efoughtagai nstt hisandonl yaf ew
stategov ernment sli
keTami lNadu,Kar natakaandGuj ar athav edonesomeef fort
sf or
thebenef itoft ransgenders.Si nceTr ansgendercommuni tyar enei thert reatedasmal e
orf emal enorgi vent hestatusofat hi
rdgenderandar edepr ivedofmanyoft heright s
andpr ivi
legeswhi chotherper sonsenj oyasaci t
izenoft hecount r
y.

Despitet hef actt hatt het ransgenderi sanumbr el

l
at erm andcov ersmanyt ypesst il
l
peopleonl ytalkaboutt her ightsi ftheHi j
rasandnoot hercommuni tybecauset hey
haveahi storyofcul tur alaccept ance.Fori nst
ance, poli
ticiansar emor elikelytospeak
forther i
ght soft heHi jrast hant her i
ghtsofgayandl esbi ans.Tr ansgenderwer efacing
blat
antv i
olenceofev eryki ndandwer edi scri
mi natedatev erypl at
for m butsi t
uati
ons
changedaf ter“TheHi jraandKot hiMov ement ”inBangal or eani niti
ati
v eofSangama,a
l
ocalNGO.Oneoft hemai ni ssuesoft hemov ementwast hef actt hatt hel awfail
edt o
recognizet ransgenderasi ndiv i
dualsandwasconsi deredl egallyinv i
sibleandnotgi ven
anyl egalst atus.Ar rest swi thoutt hewar rantandphy sicalt ortur ewer epar tofthei r
l
ives. Thr ought hismov ementt herewasadecr easei nthenumberofcr imesandt hey
start
edl ivingpeacef ully.Anot hermaj orpr oblem fort ransgenderi sSec.377ofI PC
whichcr i
mi nall
ypenal izesunnat ur
alsexbecauseofwhi cht ransgenderhast of ace
blat
antt or t
ureandabusei nt hepasty ear s.Somei nst
anceswhi chi l
lustratetherange
andmagni t
udeofexpl oi tationf acedbyt hem underSec.377i s“ TheBangal oreInci
dent ,
2004″ .Thev i
cti
m oft het ortur ewasaHi j
raf r
om Bangal or ewhowasatapubl icplace
dressedi nf emalecl othi ng.Theper sonwassubj ectedt ogangr ape, forcedt ohaveor al
andanalsexbyagr oupofhool igans.Lat erhewast akent oapol i
cest ationwher ehe
wasst r
ippednaked,handcuf fedt oawi ndow,gr osslyabusedandt orturedbecauseof
hissexual i
dentit
y .

Anothermajorpr obl
em facedbyt hecommuni tyi sofeducat ion,employmentand
healt
hcar
eser v
ices,becauseofthei
ror i
entati
ont heyareusual l
yexcludedfrom thei
r
famil
iesatyoungagebecauseofwhi chtheydon’ thaveaccesst oeducati
onwhi ch
l
eadst ounemploymentandt heyhavetowor kassexwor kers.Theyareoftenrej
ected
byhospit
alsandsomet imesr emai
nuncur edwhi chresul
tint heirear
lydeaths.These
probl
emshav ebeendecreasedtoalargeextentinthepasty ears.

● RECOGNI
TIONOFTRANSGENDERSI
NINDI
A:

Theharassmentfacedbytr
ansgenderpeopleisbl
atantandtheysuff
erphysi
caland
ment
alagonyev er
yday.Theadminist
rati
on,aswel
lassociet
ytreat
sthem asunequal
andtheref
orether
eisaneedt oidenti
fythem asathi
rdgenderandgivethem equal
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

ri
ghtsasanyot herperson.Earl
i
estUKcaseaf terwhi
cht herewasaneedt orecognize
ri
ghts oftransgenderas any ot hercitizen because itlaid down the ground for
di
scri
mi nat
ioninthecaseofCor bettv.Corbet
t,thecourtheldthatthesexofaper sonis
deter
minedatt het i
meoft hebirt
hi naccor dancewithst atedbiol
ogicalcr
iter
iaand
wit
houtanyconsiderati
onsoftheper son’spsychologi
calsex.

Theessent i
alpr obl
em her eisthatl awr ecogni zessexuali dent i
typurelyont hebasi sof
thebi ological defi
niti
onoft hesext heyar ebor ni n.Simi larl
y,civill
awst ooar ei nneedof
urgentr efor m.I ftr
ansgender sar etohav ethesameandequalr i
ghtsasot herci t
izens,
therei saneedf ortheirrecogni t
ionasat hir
dgender .Thi schangei ncivillawwi l
lentitl
e
them anent ir
egamutofr i
ght sav ail
ablet oal lotherci tizensbasedsi mpl yont hef act
thatt heynowbel ongt oat hir
dgender .Itwasal soar guedi nNALSAcaset hatv ari
ous
InternationalFor umsandU. NBodi eshav erecogni zedt heirgenderi dent i
tyandr eferred
tot heYogy akar t
aPr i
nciplesandpoi ntedoutt hatthosepr i
ncipleshav ebeenr ecognized
by v arious count r
ies ar ound t he wor ld.Many count ri
es hav e already r ecognized
transgenderast hethirdgenderandI ndiai sinneedoft hisdev elopment .Earliestsettled
casei nt hi
scont extistheNazFoundat i
onj udgementwher etheconst i
tutional val
idit
yof
Sec.377ofI ndianPenalCode,1860hasbeenchal lenged,whi chcr i
mi nallypenal i
zes
whati sdescr ibedas‘ unnat uralsex’t ot heext entt hesai dpr ovi
sionscr iminali
zes
consensual actsbetweenadul tsi nprivate.Sec.377ofI PCr eadsout :

“Whoevervolunt
ari
l
yhascarnalint
ercour
seagainsttheorderofnaturewithanyman,
womanorani malshal
lbepuni
shedwi thi
mpr i
sonmentforli
fe,orwi
thimpri
sonmentof
ei
therdescr
ipti
onforater
m whichmayext endtotenyears,andshal
lalsobeli
abl
efor
fi
ne”.

EXPLANATION:“Penetr
ati
onissuff
ici
enttoconst
it
utet
hecar
nali
nter
cour
senecessar
y
tot
heoffensedescr
ibedinthi
ssect
ion”.

Att hecor eoft hecont r

oversyi nvolv
edher ei st hepenalpr ov i
sionSect i
on377I PC
whi chcr imi nali
zessexot hert hanhet er osexualpeni l
e-vaginali ntercourse.Si ncet his
sect i
onwasbasedupont r
aditionalmor alst andardsandt heIPCwasf ormedi n1860i n
Br i
ti
shI ndi at hust hi
ssect ioni soutdat edaccor dingt omoder nt i
mesandshoul dbe
decr i
mi nalized.Mor eov er,Sect i
on377ser vesast heweaponf orpol i
ceabuse; detai ning
and quest ioning, ext orti
on, pol i
ce har assment ,f orced sex and negat i
v e and
discriminat orybeliefst owar dssamesexr elati
onsandsexual i
t ymi norit
ieswhi chaf fect
transgenderpeopl ephy si
callyandpsy chol ogicall
y.InNazFoundat ion,itwashel dt hat
Sec.377wi l
lnotber epeal edbut‘ Doct r
ineofSev erabil
ity’appl i
esi nasenset hatSec.
377I PCi sonl yappl i
cabl et ocasesi nvolv ingnon- consensualsex.I twasal sodecl ar ed
thatSec377I PCv i
olatesAr t
icle14,15and21.Ther i
ghtt oequal i
tyasdef inedi nThe
Decl arati
onofPr i
nciplesonEqual i
tystat esequal ityas-t her i
ghtt oequal ityisther ight
ofal lhumanbei ngst obeequali ndignity ,tobet reatedwi t
hr espectandconsi der ation
andt opart i
cipateonal lequalbasi swithot hersint heareaofeconomi c,soci al
,cul tural
,
politi
calorci villi
fe.Al lhumanbei ngsar eequalbef oret helaw andhav et her i
ghtt o
equalpr otectionandbenef itoft helaw.Si nceSec377i sv i
olati
v eofAr t
icl
e14t husi t
meanst ogi veequalt reatmentt othet ransgendercommuni tyandr ecogni zet hem as
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

equal
s.

Butthisdecisi
onwassoonov er
ruledi nS.K Koushalv .NazFoundati
onwherei twas
heldthatt heHC commi tt
edser i
ouser rorindeclar i
ngSec.377asunconst i
tuti
onal
becauset her
ewasnot angi
blemat er
ial
spl acedbef oretheHCt oshow thatSec.377
hadbeenusedf orprosecuti
onofhomosexual sasacl ass.TheSCdecl ar
edthatt he
secti
ondoesnotsuf f
erfrom theviceofunconst it
utionali
tyand 
thedecl
arati
onmadeby
thedivi
sionbenchofHighCour ti
sl egall
yunsustainable.

Themosti mpor tantcaser egardi

ngt herecogni tionoft heThi rdGenderi sNALSAcase.
TGsar eal soent i
tledt oenj oyeconomi c,soci al,cul turalandpol i
ti
calr ightswi thout
discri
mi nationbecausef ormsofdi scri
mi nationont hegr oundofgenderar ev i
olativeof
fundament alfreedomsandhumanr i
ghts.Itwasal sohel di nthisjudgmentt hatv alues
suchaspr ivacy ,sel f
-ident
ity,autonomyandper sonali ntegr i
tyaref undament alr ights
guarant eed t o member s of t he t r
ansgender communi ty
.The r ight toi dent i
fy
transgenderasat hirdgendercomesunderAr ti
cle21.Thecour theldt hatTGhav ea
ri
ghtt oi dentif
yt hem asanygendert heyl i
keandi sev identf rom thej udgmenti nwhi ch
thecour tsaid-“ recogni ti
onofonegenderl iesatt hehear toft hef undament alrightt o
dignity.Legalr ecogni tionofgenderi dent i
tyi st her efore,par tofr i
ghtt odi gnityand
freedom guar ant eedunderourconst it
ution.”Tr ansgender swer efinallygivent heirown
recogni t
ionaf terNALSAcase.TheCour thel d“ Hijrasar eident i
fi
edasper sonsoft hi
rd
genderandar enoti denti
fiedeitherasmal eorf emal e.Thedi stincti
onmakest hem
separ atef r
om bot hmal eandf emalegender sandt heyconsi dert hemsel vesnei ther
mannorwoman,buta‘ thir
dgender ”
.Hi jr
as,t her efore,bel ongt oadi sti
nctsoci o-
reli
giousandcul turalgr oupandhav e,t
her ef
or e,tobeconsi der edas‘ thirdgender ’
, apart
from mal eandf emal e.Manyst atesinI ndiahav er ecogni zedTGast hir
dgenderl i
ke
Tami lNadu,Bi har ,Ker alaand Tr ipuraand hav et akenmanywel far emeasur est o
safeguar dthei rright sandmaket hem equal swi tht heci ti
zensoft hecount ry.

Itistheef f
or tofNGOsl i
keSangamat hatrai
sedthei ssueofhar assmentf acedbyt he
transgendert hatnow t heyar egi vensi milarri
ghtsasanyot herci ti
zenofI ndia.For
i
nst ance,t he Mi ni
st ry ofExt ernalAf fai
rs which i sin char ge ofbot h passpor t
appl i
cati
onsandonl inev isaf ormspr ovidesfortr
ansgenderopt i
oni nthe‘ sex’categor y
andt heEl ectionCommi ssionandUI Denr ol
lmenthav easi mi laroption.Att hest ate
l
ev el,Tami lNaduandKar nat akagov ernmenthav eenact edorder sthatprov i
def orsoci o
-economi cbenef i
tt ot r
ansgenderper sons.Mor eover,itwasclear lystatedbyt hecour t
i
n NALSA j udgmentt hatt he st at es shouldt ake necessar y measur es to adopt
transgender sasat hirdgender .I talsol aiddownt hatt hest
ateshoul dt akenecessar y
l
egi sl
ativ
e,admi nistrati
veandot hermeasur estoensur ethatpr oceduresexi stwher eby
allstate-issuedi dent i
typaper swhi chi ndi
cateaper son’
sgender /sex-includingbi rth
certif
icates,passpor ts,elector alr ecor dsandot herdocument s-r efl
ectst heper son’s
profoundsel f-definedgenderi dent i
ty .

TRANSGENDERPERSONSBI
LL,
2016

Transgender
shavebeenclearl
yaccept
edasal egalentit
yinTransgenderPersonsBill
,
2016whosepr eambl
ecl ear
lyst es-“
at Abil
ltoprovidef orprot
ecti
onoft ransgender
personsandthei
rwelf
areandf ormatt
ersconcer
nedt herewi
thandincident
altheret
o”.
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

Sect
ion4oft
hebi
l
lst
atesaboutRecogni
ti
onofi
dent
it
yoft
ransgenderper
son-

(
1).Atransgenderper
sonshallhav
ear
ightt
ober
ecogni
zedassuch,i
naccor
dance
wi
ththeprovi
sionsoft
heAct,

(2)
.Aper sonrecogni
zedat
ransgenderundersubsect
ion(
1)shal
lhav
ear
ightt
osel
f-
percei
vedident
ity
.

Af t
ert hisbillandNALSA j udgmentt herewasqui t
eanupl if
tmenti nt hest at
usof
transgender sast heywer er ecogni zedasal egalent it
yandwer enotdepr i
v edofany
fundament alri
ghts.Someoft her ecommendat i
onst hatfi
ndapl aceinthef i
naldraft
i
ncl ude t he rescue,pr ot ect i
on and r ehabili
tati
on of t r
ansgender s. Educat i
onal
i
nst it
utionshav ebeendi rectedt oadoptani ncl
usiveappr oacht hatisgenderneut r
al.
Thegov ernmenthasal sof ormul atedwelfareschemesespeci all
yt argetedtowar dstheir
uplift
mentsuch as basi c medi calfacil
i
ties including sex r eassignmentsur gery.
Vocat i
onalt rai
ningprogrammesar ealsoint hepipeli
ne.Howev er,theambi guityinthe
billaboutt hedef ini
ti
onof“ thir
dgender ”hasposedaser i
ouspr obl
em asSec.377
drawst hem int
oi t
snet.Ther efore,the2016bi l
listober e-
intr
oducedi nwi ntersession
ofPar li
ament( December15, 2017)

Manystateshav eworkedtowardstheupli
ftmentofTr
ansgender
sandev enCent ral
Gover
nmenthasadopt edvari
ouslawsandmeasureswhi
chhav ehel
pedthem tobeon
anequalfootingwithother
s.However
,ther
eisaneedtochangethemindsetofsoci
et y
andti
llt
het imet hi
snarrowmindseti
snotchangedandi
tisnotwill
i
ngtoacceptthem
asapar tofi t,nolawsormeasur esadoptedbythegovernmentcanbeef fect
ively
i
mplement ed.

Nat
ional
Legal
Ser
vicesAut
hor
it
yv.Uni
onofI
ndi
aandot
her
s(2014)5SCC438

In 2012,the NationalLegalSer vices Authori

ty,an Indian-based or
ganizat
ion t
hat
provi
despr obonol egalser
vicestomar ginali
zedcommuni ties,fi
ledawritpeti
ti
onwith
theSupremeCour tofI ndi
aonbehal fofcount ry
’str
ansgendercommuni t
y.Thepetiti
on
soughtal egaldeclarat
ionoft hei
rgenderi dent
itythantheoneassi gnedtot hem and
thattheyareenti
tl
edt oequalrecognit
ionoft hei
rconsti
tut
ional r
ight
s.

InApril2014,theSupremeCour tall
owedt hepet i
ti
onandhel dt hattherighttoex pr
ess
one’
si denti
tyinanon- binarygenderwasanessent ialpar toff r
eedom ofexpr ession,
andindivi
dualsmusthav et heri
ghtt oexpresstheirself
-identif
iedgender .Itdirectedthe
governmentt ogivelegalrecogniti
ontothet hi
rdgender , sucht hatindi
vidualswoul dbe
abl
et oidentif
yt hemselves as mal e,female ort hird gender .Italso or dered the
governmenttot akenecessaryst epstoremov ethesoci alstigma, promot etransgender -
speci
fichealt
hpr ograms,andgr antthem equallegalprotection.

FACTSOFTHEMATTER:

I
n2012,t
heNat i
onalLegalSer
vicesAut
hori
ty,anIndi
anstat
utorybodyconst
it
utedt
o
gi
vel
egalrepr
esent
ati
ont omarginal
i
zedsectionsofsoci
ety
,fi
ledawr i
tpeti
ti
onwit
h
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

theSupremeCourtofIndi
a.Thepetit
ionwasj
oinedbyanon-gover
nmentalor
ganizati
on
repr
esenti
ng t
he Kinnartransgendercommunity,and an i
ndiv
idualwho identi
fi
ed
himsel
fasa“Hij
ra”.

Theterm“ Hij
ra”isusedt odescr i
bet het ransgendercommuni tyinSout hAsia.Itusuall
y
i
ncludesher maphr odi
tes,andcast r
atedmenaswel lasnon-castrat
edmen.Thel att
er
usuall
ydo nothav efunctionalr eproduct i
veorgansofei thersex.Thet ransgender
communi tyinSout hAsi a,howev er,isusedt odescr i
beawi derrangeofgendernon-
conformity.I
tservesasanumbr ellatermt hati
ncludespeopl
ewhodonoti denti
fywith
thebiol
ogicalgendertheywer ebor nwith, aswellaspeoplewhomayi denti
fyasnei t
her
gender.Thisincl
udesher maphr odites,pre-operat
iveandpost-operati
vet r
anssexuals,as
wellastransvest
ites.

Thepet i
ti
onsoughtal egaldeclarati
onoftheirgenderi denti
tyt hanoneassi gnedatthe
ti
meofbi rthandt hatnon-recogniti
onoftheirgenderident i
tyviolatesAr t
icl
es14and21
oftheConst ituti
onofI ndia.Thet ransgendercommuni tyurgedt hattheirinabi
li
tyto
expressthemsel vesinter
msofabi nar
ygenderdeni est hem t
heequalpr otectionoflaw
andsoci alwel f
areschemes.Theyal sopr ayedf orl egalpr otectionasabackwar d
communi ty,aswel last her ighttobeabl et oexpr esst hei
rsel f-ident
ifi
edgenderi n
governmentf orms.

TheAddi t
ionalSoli
cit
orGener al
,representi
ng t
hegov ernment,r ecogni
zed t
hatthe
matterrepresent
ed a seri
oussoci alissue.He inf
ormed t he Courtthatan Exper
t
Commi t
tee had alr
eady been establi
shed by the governmentt o address v
ari
ous
probl
emsf acingt
hetransgendercommuni ty.

DECI
SIONOVERVI
EW:

Just i
ce Radhakr ishnan del ivered t he maj or
it
y opinion ofThe Supr eme Cour tof
India.Afterdiscussi ngahi stor i
calbackgr oundoft r
ansgenderi nIndia,TheSupr eme
Cour taf fi
rmabl yr ecognizedt hatgenderi dentit
yandsexualor ient
ationincludet rans
gender sandt hat“ eachper son’ssel f-defi
nedsexualor i
entat
ionandgenderi denti
tyis
i
nt egraltot heirper sonali
tyandi soneoft hemostbasi caspectsofsel f
-det
er mination,
dignityandf r
eedom andnooneshal lbef orcedtounder gomedi calprocedures[ …]asa
requirementf orlegalr ecognitionoft heirgenderi denti
ty.
”[para.20]I tthenr eferr
edt o
relevanti nter
nationalhumanr ightsst andar ds,parti
cul
arlyYogy akartaPrinci
ples,whi ch
prov i
des:“ Humanbei ngsofal lsexualor ientati
onsandgenderi dentiti
esar eent i
tl
edt o
thef ullenjoymentofal lhumanr ights.”[para.22]

Inaddit
ion,theCour tdiscussedindetailprogr
essivejur
isprudenceofothercountri
es,
such as United Kingdom,Aust ral
ia,New Zeal and,and the United St
ates towards
recogni
zingthebasi crightsoftranssexualpersons.Itf
oundi tnecessaryforIndi
at o
foll
owinter
nationalhumanr ight
sconv enti
onsandnon- bi
ndingprinci
plesasthecountry
l
acks“ suit
ablelegisl
ati
onpr ot
ecti
ngt her i
ght
soft hemember soft hetransgender
communi ty
.”

TheCour
tthenproceededininterpr
eti
ngtheConsti
tuti
onofIndi
ai nli
ghtofhuman
ri
ght
sconvent
ionsandprinci
ples.UnderArt
i e14,“
cl theSt
ateshallnotdenyto‘
any
 SOUTHCALCUTTALAW COLLEGEMOOTCOURTSOCI
ETY

person’equal i
tybeforet helawort heequalpr ot ect
ionoft helawswi thi
nt het erri
toryof
India.”The Cour theldt he arti
cle affords pr otecti o‘
on t anyper son,’“transgender
personswhoar eneithermal e/f
emal ef allwi thintheexpr ession‘ person’and,hence,
entitl
edt olegalprotecti
onofl awsinallspher esofSt at
eactivity,i
ncludingempl oyment,
healthcare,educat i
onaswel lasequalci v i
landci ti
zenshipr ights,asenj oyedbyany
otherci t
izenoft hi
scount ry
.”[para.54]I talsohel dt hatArti
cles15and16’ spr ohibit
ion
ofdi scri
mi nat
ionagai nstanyci t
izen,interal ia,ont hegr oundofsexequal lyappl yto
transsexualper sons.Accordingtot heCour t,
t heuseofwor d‘ sex’inthear ti
cles“ isnot
j
ustl imitedt obiologicalsexofmal eorf emal e,butintendedt oincludepeopl ewho
consi derthemselvest obeneithermal eorf emal e.
”[para.59]

Ast ot her i
ghtt of r
eedom ofexpr essionguar anteedunderAr t
icl
e19( 1)(
a)oft he
Const i
tuti
on,TheSupr emeCour truledt t“
hati includesone’sri
ghttoexpressionofhi s
self
-identi
fi
edgender ,”andnot wit
hstandinglegitimateexcepti
onspur suanttoAr t
icl
e
19(2)oft heConst i
tut
ion,“nor
estri
ctioncanbepl acedonone’spersonalappear anceor
choiceofdr essing.”[
para.62]Itconcl udedthatat r
ansgender
’spersonali
ty“couldbe
expressedbyt hetr
ansgender’
sbehav i
orandpr esentati
on[andthegovernment ]cannot
prohibit
,rest
rictorint
erferewit
hat ransgender’sexpr essi
onofsuchper sonal
ity,which
refl
ectsthatinherentpersonal
i
ty.”[
par a.66]

Lastl
y,theCour treferredtoAr t
icle21oft heConst i
tut i
on,whichsay s“noper sonshal l
bedepr i
v edofhi sl i
feorper sonall ibertyexceptaccor dingtopr ocedur eestabli
shedby
l
aw.”I tinter
pr et
edt hisprovisionbr oadlypr otects“ thoseaspect sofl if
ewhi chgot o
makeaper son’sl ifemeani ngf ul,
”i ncludingone’ sr ightofsel f-determinati
onoft he
gendert owhi chaper sonbel ongs.Accor dingly,theCour theldt hat“Hijr
as/Eunuchs,
ther
efore,hav etobeconsi der edast hi
rdGender ,overandabov ebi narygendersunder
ourConst it
utionandt helaws.”[ para.74] .
Basedont hef oregoi
nganal ysi
s,TheSupr eme
Courtdecl ar
ed,i nteral i
a,t
ransgender s“apar tfrom bi narygender ,bet r
eatedas‘ thir
d
gender’fort hepur poseofsaf eguar dingt heirrightsunderPar tI I
IofourConst ituti
on
andt hel awsmadebyt hePar l
iamentandt heSt ateLegi sl
ature.”[para.129]I talso
dir
ectedt hest ategov ernment s‘ t
ogr antlegalr ecogni ti
onoft heirgenderi denti
tysuch
asmal e,femal eorast hi
rdgender .
”[par a.129]

CONCLUSI
ON:
 

Inconcl usion,TheI ndi

angov ernmentshoul damendt het r
ansgenderr i
ghtsbil
lt o
ensuret hatt ransgenderpeoplecansel f
-ident if
ytheirlegalgenderwi thoutunwant ed
i
nterventionf rom commi t
teesorexper ts,bet heymedi cal
,psychological
,oranyoneelse.
Andt hisal oneshoul dformt hebasi sf ort hei
raccesst oallrights,socialsecurit
y
measur es, benefit
s,andent i
tl
ement s.Onlyt hencant helawsuppor tthecommuni ti
esit
seekst opr otectandempower .Thepar liament arycommi t
tee,headedbyBi as,has
madeagr eatstartinbackingtransr i
ghtsi nI ndia.Nowi t’
supt othegov ernmenttonot
onlyenactagoodl aw,butrepealthecol onial legacyofsection377aswel l
.