Transgender Couple Moves Kerala High Court Praying Their Child's Birth Certificate Should Reflect Them As 'Parents', Not Father & Mother

A plea has been moved in the Kerala High Court by the nation's first transgender parents seeking a direction to be issued to the Secretary, Kozhikode Corporation, to issue a new birth certificate for their child, showing the names of the couple as just 'parents', instead of 'father' and 'mother', respectively. 

The matter was adjourned to next Thursday by the Single Bench of Justice N. Nagaresh after State's counsel pointed certain technical defects in the petition. Meanwhile, the bench asked the State counsel to find out what could be done to resolve the petitioners' "genuine grievance".

The plea has been filed by Zahhad, a transman, and Ziya Paval, a transwoman, who became India's first transgender parents on the birth of their child in February this year. It is averred that the Kozhikode Corporation registered the birth of the child, and issued a birth certificate under Section 12 of the Kerala Registration of Birth and Death Rules 1999, recording the name of the father as Ziya Paval (Transgender) and that of the mother as Zahad (Transgender).

The couple is aggrieved by the authority's denial of their request to label them as 'parents' only.

The petitioners submitted that they had requested the Corporation to avoid the name of father and mother on the birth certificate, since the biological mother of the child identified herself as a male years ago, and was presently living as male member in the society.

"Since scientifically there’s some contradiction in the fact that male giving birth to a child, the petitioners requested the authorities to avoid the name of father and mother but simply writing ‘Parent’ to avoid further embarrassment which the third petitioner would have to face during her life time viz. school admission, Adhar Card, PAN Card, Passport and various other documents including job and connected matters," the plea states. 

The plea as been moved through Advocates Mariamma A.K., Padma Lakshmi, and Ipsita Ojal. 

Case Title: Zahhad & Ors. v. State of Kerala & Anr. 

Case Number: WP(C) 23763/ 2023