Amidst other news last week, two were definitely positive developments for the transgenders. Marvia Malik became the first transgender news reporter in Pakistan. And Preethisha and Premkumaran were the first transsexual man and woman to join their hands in marriage in Tamil Nadu. From a cliched perspective this means a symbol of progress for transgenders, both on the professional and personal front.
It has also been a month since Shanavi Ponnusamy, a transwoman from Tamil Nadu, wrote to the President alleging that Air India had denied her a cabin crew job despite her clearing the written exam. The Cabinet was compelled to bring changes in the bill on transgenders by including public establishments as another place where transgenders will be treated equally.
One can definitely be hopeful that the cement ceilings are breaking for the transgenders worldwide. But behind every victory is a strenuous struggle by the discriminated. Take the case of K. Prithika Yashini, the first transwoman Sub-Inspector of Police in India. It took an order from the Madras High Court for the Tamil Nadu Uniformed Services Recruitment Board to appoint her.
In 2014, the Supreme Court included transgenders as third gender and dignified them by safeguarding their rights under Article 21 of the Constitution. This forced the Parliament to pass the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill in 2016. But are legal remedies enough when the problem is essentially social and cultural.
Image Credit: thestar
Manabi Bandopadhyay, a transgender who was appointed as India’s first college principal in 2015 had to resign a year later due to immense mental pressure by the agitating students and faculty.
India has a mythical connection to the transgenders when the proud Pandava brother, Arjun hid under the disguise of a eunuch in their last year of exile. And yet, they are treated as pariahs in society.
There is a long road ahead before members of the transgender community are accepted into the mainstream. Families, educational institutions, workplaces and society at large need to be sensitised to the rights of the third gender. Those who are integrated drop out because they still feel alienated. Mere legal recourse is not the answer to a complex issue with social, cultural and psychological connotations.
Read Also: Marvia Malik Becomes Pakistan’s First Transgender News Channel Anchor
