The Rights of Transgender Persons Bill Draft released by Ministry of Social Justice [Read the Bill]

A draft of Transgender’s Right Bill to provide for the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive national policy for ensuring overall development of the Transgender Persons and for their welfare to be undertaken by the State is ready and released by ministry through its Website recently.

Transgender and Transgender Identity

The Bill defines Transgender as a “a person, whose gender does not match with the gender assigned to that person at birth and includes trans-men and trans-women (whether or not they have undergone sex reassignment surgery or hormone therapy or laser therapy etc.), gender-queers and a number of socio-cultural identities such as — kinnars, hijras, aravanis, jogtas etc. A transgender person should have the option to choose either ‘man’, ‘woman’ or ‘transgender’ as well as have the right to choose any of the options independent of surgery/ hormones.”

The Bill says that Transgender should be declared as the third gender, and a Transgender Person should have the option to identify as ‘man’, ‘woman’ or ‘transgender’ as well as have the right to choose any of the options independent of surgery/hormones. Only the nomenclature ‘transgender’ should be used and nomenclatures like ‘other’ or ‘others’ should not be used.

Transgender Certificate

The Bill also states that a certificate that a person is a transgender person should be issued by a state level authority duly designated or constituted by respective the State/UT on the lines of Tamil Nadu Aravanis Welfare Board, on the recommendation of a District level Screening Committee headed by the Collector/District Magistrate and comprising District Social Welfare Officer, psychologist, psychiatrist, a social worker and two representatives of transgender community and such other person or official as the State Govt/UT Administration deems appropriate.

Transgender’s right to home

Section 13(1) of the Draft states that No child who is a transgender shall be separated from his or her parents on grounds of being a transgender except on an order of competent Court, if required in the best interest of the child.

The Bill also has provisions regarding Health, Education and Employment of Transgenders. The Bill also states that Government is duty bound to take appropriate steps in protecting rights of Transgenders and to ensure that they are not being discriminated against.

Read the full text of the bill here.