This Policy Brief proposes the need for legal recognition of intersex persons and intersex rights,…
Database
A database for Indian and South Asian Trans rights legal resources
Transgender Rights
- Publications
- Litigation
- Events
- News & Media
- Blog
Since 2015 we have engaged in path breaking litigation and law and policy research that shapes the field of transgender rights in India.
The Transgender Rights movement is active in the form of grass roots advocacy, legal research and focused litigation. CLPR has been leading litigation efforts in the Supreme Court and High Courts, providing legal support at the ground-level and creating awareness in the academic and public spheres.
Transform
International Conference on Transgender Rights and the Law.
Transgender Identity & The Law Course
An elective university course on transgender identity and the law.
Publications
Winding Path to Trans Equality (with Jayna Kothari and Tejas Pande)
Bangalore International Centre recorded a podcast with Senior Advocate and Executive Director, CLPR Jayna Kothari where she spoke to Tejus AP about trans rights, important legal judgments in India, the US, and elsewhere in recent years, and the path towards gender equity and inclusion.
Equality Bill 2020: Takes a New Step in Addressing Discrimination, Recognising Intersectionality & Promoting Equality.
CLPR’s draft Equality Bill 2020 takes a new step in addressing discrimination experienced by people on the basis of caste, gender, religion, transgender and intersex identity, disability and other grounds. It aims to promote equality, prohibit different types of discriminatory conduct, provide adequate civil remedies and set up fora for redressal that are accessible and effective in addressing discrimination.
Litigation
Kabeer C alias Aneera v. State of Kerala & Ors.
A Public Interest Litigation was filed in the Kerala High Court by Aneera Kabeer, a transgender person involved in mobilising persons in the transgender community for the purpose of achieving equal opportunities for the community. The Petition seeks various reliefs relating to transgender people during period of COVID-19 threat. The writ petition sought for measures by the state government for “the distribution of food ration, medicines, access to medical treatment, etc. to the transgender community in Kerala.”
Vyjayanti Vasanta Mogli v. State of Telangana & Ors.
Over the last two weeks, CLPR filed public interest litigation in the Telangana High Court…
Sai Rahul Vijayakumar v. The Registrar, Bharatiyar University & Anr.
The Hon’ble Madras High Court held, with respect to a petition for change of name and gender of a transgender person in educational documents, that on receipt of the application along with the fee of Rs.500, the Respondent No. 1 University should carry out the necessary change within a period of three weeks.
Events
News And Media
Bar and Bench
Transgender Persons Act, 2019 violates the fundamental rights it seeks to protect: Another challenge mounted in Supreme Court
Bar & Bench reported the petition challenging the Transgender Persons Act, 2019 that violates the fundamental right filed by Advocate Anandita Pujari and represented by Senior Counsel Jayna Kothari.
Deccan Chronicle
Madras High Court Reprieve for Three Transgenders
The Deccan Chronicle reports on a recent judgement by the Madras High Court regarding transgender inclusion in the police force. Addressing three writ petitions represented by CLPR, the case dealt with strict upper-age limits for transgender persons applying for the post of grade II police constable.
Deccan Chronicle
Revealing Success Story of a Transgender
The Deccan Chronicle’s Yamuna R. speaks to transgender activist Grace Banu and senior advocate Jayna Kothari regarding transgender rights in India and reservation policies in public employment.
Blog
CLPR | Trans Law Quarterly | Issue I
Putting this newsletter together became a practice of accounting how we gather together, of holding to our greatest capacity as we shrink in the onslaught of terrible abandonment and destruction. We hope that whenever you find the time to peruse through this, it will remind you that we are in this together.
Need for Recognition of Trans Rights in International Human Rights Law
A cursory look at the development of trans rights indicates that the world has made significant progress in addressing the recognition of gender identity rights. These regional and domestic developments do not, however, recompense the reality that transgender persons still suffer some of the most pervasive forms of violence and discrimination. In the absence of concrete universal standards, States are free to formulate laws that grant limited or arbitrary rights to transgender persons.
At the Intersections of Caste and Gender
In this article published by the Thinking Republic, Jayna Kothari, Senior Advocate & Executive Director at Center for Law and Policy Research talks about the intersection of caste and gender highlighting the discrimination faced by Dalit and Adivasi trans persons. She also argues that the urgent for all activists, lawyers, researchers and civil society members to be intersectional in its approach to be able to understand the multidimensional discrimination faced by the persons at the intersections of race, caste, and gender identity.
Trans Equality in India : Affirmation Of The Right To Self-Determination Of Gender
In this paper published by NUJS Law Review, Jayna Kothari, Senior Advocate & Executive Director…
The Trans Act Is A Reflection Of Our Broken Democracy
In this opinion piece published by Huff Post, Vikramaditya Sahai argues that how trans politics and their demands challenge the logic of representative democracy that holds the formation of the National Council for Transgender Persons as signs of development and progress itself.
Exclusion Amplified: A report on how the pandemic has impacted the trans and intersex community in India
This Report is an attempt at presenting the needs and rights of the trans community…
Sangama & Anr v. State of Karnataka
The Petitioners, an organization working for the upliftment of sexual minorities, sex workers and people…
Kabeer C alias Aneera v. State of Kerala & Ors.
A Public Interest Litigation was filed in the Kerala High Court by Aneera Kabeer, a transgender person involved in mobilising persons in the transgender community for the purpose of achieving equal opportunities for the community. The Petition seeks various reliefs relating to transgender people during period of COVID-19 threat. The writ petition sought for measures by the state government for “the distribution of food ration, medicines, access to medical treatment, etc. to the transgender community in Kerala.”
Grace Banu Ganeshan & Ors. v. Union of India & anr. | A constitutional challenge to The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019
CLPR has filed a writ petition before the Supreme Court of India on behalf of Grace Banu, and others, who are members of the transgender community, and well-known transgender rights activists who have been working for the promotion of the rights and entitlements of transgender, intersex, and gender non-conforming persons in India for the last several years.
Vyjayanti Vasanta Mogli v. State of Telangana & Ors.
Over the last two weeks, CLPR filed public interest litigation in the Telangana High Court…
04th
Aug 2020
Live Webinar : “Rights of Intersex Persons: The Need for Legal Recognition”
Read more
Venue Zoom (Online)
Time 4:00 P.M.-5:30 P.M.
03rd
Aug 2020
Exclusion Amplified: Meeting to Present Key Findings
Read more
Venue Zoom (Online)
Time 7:00 P M-8:00 PM
25th
Jul 2020
An open meeting to discuss comments on the Draft Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020
Read more
Venue Online (Zoom)
Time 11:00 A.M.-1:00 P.M.
23rd
Jun 2020
#Born with Pride: The rights of transgender people in India
Read more
Venue Webex (Online)
Time 17:00-18:00 Hours (UTC +5:30)
Live Law
Karnataka HC Seeks Govt Response On Plea Seeking Horizontal Reservation For Transgenders Instead Of OBC Reservation
Live Law reported on the High Court of Karnataka’s order where the Court sought a response from the State government on an application filed for providing horizontal reservation to Transgender Persons in Public Employment. The applicant submitted that reservation should not be provided under the OBC category but should be provided as a horizontal reservation as a separate special category like the reservation provided for women and persons with disabilities, that can be interlocked with other social categories of vertical reservation of SC/ST/OBC category. The Court gave the direction while hearing the petition filed by Jeeva, represented by Senior Advocate Jayna Kothari and assisted by Almas Shaikh, a Research Associate at CLPR.
Times of India
Ensure free rice to transgenders without ration cards: High Court to Telangana Government
Times of India reported on High Court of Telangana’s direction to the State government where it asked the State government to inform whether it would supply free rice to transgenders and other sections of people who do not have ration cards under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana which promises food grains to even those who do not posses ration cards. The bench gave the order while hearing a PIL filed by Vyjayanti Vasanta Mogli, represented by Sr. Advocate Jayna Kothari.
The New Indian Express
Earmark special COVID-19 wards for transgender community in hospitals: Telangana High Court
The New Indian Express reported on High Court of Telangana’s direction to the State government where it asked State government to earmark separate isolation wards for the transgender persons during the ongoing pandemic. The bench was hearing a PIL filed by Vyjayanti Vasanta Mogli, represented by Sr. Advocate Jayna Kothari.
Bar and Bench
Transgender Persons Act, 2019 violates the fundamental rights it seeks to protect: Another challenge mounted in Supreme Court
Bar & Bench reported the petition challenging the Transgender Persons Act, 2019 that violates the fundamental right filed by Advocate Anandita Pujari and represented by Senior Counsel Jayna Kothari.
What do the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020 say?
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, has been in a hurry to implement the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 (the Act). Despite widespread protests, the Act was passed on 5th December 2019. Several petitions have been filed challenging the constitutional validity of the on the Act. Since then the Ministry has tried to operationalize the Act through the publication of the Rules. After releasing the draft rules in April 2020 and in August 2020; finally, on 25th September 2020, the Ministry notified the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules 2020 (the Rules). The Rules seem to have tried to bridge the vast gap between the Act and the directions of the Supreme Court in NALSA v. Union of India.
CLPR | Trans Law Quarterly | Issue II
E D I T O R I A L We are still in…
CLPR Broadcast | August 2020
The Centre for Law and Policy Research (CLPR) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated…
Legal gender recognition in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
The State legally documents the gender of an individual from birth. For trans persons, the ability to have their gender recognized in official documents is an integral part of their right to life and dignity. Recent developments in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka relating to the legal recognition of the trans community’s right to gender recognition have been hailed as progressive; but do they go far enough? On January 26 2014, the Bangladeshi cabinet formulated a policy creating a distinct third-gender category – ‘hijra’- for trans persons. While this indicates that the State views ‘hijra’ as an umbrella term for all trans people, the term is considered to exclude other communities