Jayna Kothari, writing for The Hindu, criticizes The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018. The Lok Sabha passed the bill on 17.12.2018.
Ms. Kothari describes the Bill as “a law that defeats its purpose”. She emphasises that it “omits positive rights and ignores the protections of the NALSA judgment“. She raises the following concerns:
- It does not allow transgender and intersex persons to self-identify their gender
- It does not provide “for any reservation” for transgender and intersex persons
- It criminalises the trans community, by making it a criminal offense to compel a transgender person into begging
- It fails to provide a gamut of positive rights, such as the rights to inheritance and adoption.