HC to hear PIL seeking third gender option in exam forms
A lawyer has filed a private petition in the Calcutta high court seeking directions to the West Bengal government to introduce ‘third gender’ as an option for transgenders in application forms for examinations it holds and follow the 2014 Supreme Court order that acknowledged them as neither male nor female.
Calcutta high court lawyer Arnab Nandy filed the PIL on Monday through his counsel Kaushik Gupta. The court is yet to list a date for a hearing.
“... The apex court ruled that the Centre and state governments should introduce a column for the community in forms for public examinations. The Bengal government is yet to introduce that option in forms for examinations, including those conducted by the West Bengal Public Service Commission,” Gupta said.
He was referring to the Supreme Court’s 2014 judgment which also held that because transgenders were treated as socially and economically backward classes, they would be granted reservation in admission to educational institutions and jobs. The state government, West Bengal Public Service Commission, and West Bengal Transgender Development Board were named in the litigation.
West Bengal Transgender Development Board chairperson and state social welfare minister Dr Sashi Panja could not be reached despite repeated attempts. She also did not reply to a text message. Vice-chairperson of the board Manabi Bandopadhyay said unless there was reservation in government jobs for transgenders, a separate column in forms was meaningless. “It is the Union government that should introduce this reservation. The state has nothing to do with it,” Bandopadhyay said.
According to the 2011 census, there are half a million transgenders but activists estimate the number at about two million. The census says less than half are literate and even fewer have jobs — a concern shared by activists who say the community lives on the margins of society, ostracised because of their gender identity. In most states, the community is yet to even get identity cards and often has to take legal recourse.
A supporter of YSR Congress president YS Jaganmohan Reddy allegedly committed suicide in Andhra Pradesh’s Kadapa district, seeking the leader’s elevation as chief minister, police said on Wednesday.
Kachana Srinivasulu Reddy, 45, allegedly consumed pesticide at Tanguturu village, hours after attending a meeting addressed by Jagan on Monday. His body was discovered the next day.
A handwritten note found on Reddy said he wanted to see Jagan elected as chief minister in the 2019 assembly elections, assistant sub-inspector of police, KV Subbaiah, said.
Political parties and leaders are known to evoke extreme sentiments among supporters in India. Over the years, there have been many incidents of people resorting to violence or killing themselves over electoral losses of leaders they support.
Jagan, son of former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, is on a 3,000km march called the Praja Sankalpam Padyatra to rally support for his party, with the aim of dislodging the government led by CM N Chandrababu Naidu. Jagan’s public meeting at Tanguturu was part of the march.
In his note, Reddy said the state would see all-round development only if Jagan came to power.
The police official said they were trying to ascertain if the note was written by Reddy. “We will send it to forensic lab to verify handwriting,” Subbaiah said.
“He has been staying away from his family for the past 10 years. He was also a habitual drunkard. Maybe he committed suicide in an inebriated condition,” he added. A case of suspicious death has been registered.
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