Expect Clear Policy For Transgender Persons In Police Department Within Six Months: MAT To Maharashtra Government

A bench of MAT Chairperson Justice (retd) Mridula Bhatkar and Member Medha Gadgil, while adjourning the case for November 3, 2022, directed the State's General Administration Department and the Social Justice & Special Assistant Department, to file affidavits enumerating steps taken by the Maharashtra Government for implementing the Supreme Court judgment in the case of National Legal Service Authority vs. Union Of India & Ors, (2014) 5 SCC 438.

A division bench of the Supreme Court, through this judgment in April 2014, declared transgenders to be recognised as "third gender". The court also observed, "Transgender persons' right to decide their self-identified gender is also upheld and the Centre and State Governments are directed to grant legal recognition of their gender identity such as male, female or as third gender."

The MAT was hearing a petition filed by one Vinayak Kashid seeking directions to the Maharashtra Public Service Commission to allow her to apply for the post or Police Sub-Inspector as a Transgender candidate based on MPSC's advertisement dated June 23, 2022.

During the hearing, Advocate Kranti LC, appearing for Kashid, informed the bench that though born as a male, Kashid identified as a female and had opted for female sex. The applicant, therefore, has applied for the post of PSI as per the option provided by the MPSC in its advertisement.

The advocate further submitted that Kashid was a Graduate in Engineering (Electrical) and Post Graduate in Technology (Electrical Power System Engineering), yet had applied for this Government service. The advocate pleaded that Kashid should not be disqualified in the physical test if at all she clears the examination.

Swati Machekar, the Chief Presenting Officer for MPSC, told the bench that MPSC had accepted Kashid's application and she would be allowed to appear for the Preliminary Examination to be held on October 8, 2022.

Kashid's application, however, seeks reservation of posts for Transgender Persons in the recruitment to the 800 posts set out in the said advertisement.

The bench quoted from the 2014 SC judgment relied by Kashid's lawyer, "We, direct the Centre and the State Government to take steps to treat them as Socially and Educationally Backward Classes of citizens and extend all kinds of reservation in cases of admission in educational institutions and for public appointments," and sought affidavits from the relevant respondents.

The MAT bench, after quoting from the SC judgment, also noted, "In view of the above, we expect that the Respondent-State will come out with a clear policy regarding provision of the posts for other gender within six months especially in respect of the Police Department as the candidate has to undergo specific physical test in the Police Department."

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