A promise falls short

A promise falls short

Context

Four years after a landmark verdict, it is time to push for reforms to give transgender persons their rights

A landmark judgement towards gender equality: National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India (2014

National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India is a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of India, which declared transgender people to be a ‘third gender’, affirmed that the fundamental rights granted under the Constitution of India will be equally applicable to transgender people, and gave them the right to self-identification of their gender as male, female or third-gender

Questions raised by the author

With the fourth anniversary of NALSA coming up, it is time we ask whether its promises are being fulfilled? Are there positive changes on the ground?

• Problematic Transgender Persons Bill

The proposed Transgender Persons Bill, 2016 was extremely problematic as it failed to even define transgender persons adequately and was rejected by the trans community.

• Changing legal identity an uphill task

Getting their changed names and gender markers in their birth certificates, educational certificates, PAN cards, passports and identity documents is an uphill battle with no norms or guidelines laid down for such change of legal identity.

• No change allowed without medical certificates

While NALSA mandates the right to identify one’s gender even without medical intervention, government authorities do not allow change of name and gender identity unless medical certificates show that the person has undergone sex reassignment surgery, thus completely nullifying what the Supreme Court aimed to protect

• No reservation in education or employment
  • There are no schemes for reservation of transgender/intersex persons in educational institutions and public employment
  • They are not included in any of the reserved categories, making education and public employment out of bounds for them due to their transgender and gender non-conforming status
• No gender neutral public utilities

Even within schools, universities and public institutions there are no gender neutral public toilets.

What needs to be done?

• We need a Gender Identity Law, which would provide for a person to change name and gender, and take inspiration from Argentina, which introduced a law based on self-determination and provides full recognition of a person’s self-defined gender identity

Conclusion

The list of legal reforms that are needed to truly capture the letter and spirit of NALSA is long. The Supreme Court has been constantly reiterating its stand on transgender rights, and it is time that governments work towards the realisation of these rights.