The Delhi High Court, on October 5, sought responses from the government to a petition that points to a “blanket exclusion” of Transgender Persons in various educational and public employment opportunities.
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav of the Delhi HC, who was hearing the petition, allowed the writ petition and issued notices to the Union Ministries of Home Affairs and Law and Justice, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the Government of Delhi and Delhi's Department of Social Welfare.
This petition was filed by Advocate Diksha Dadu on behalf of Ayesha, the petitioner. Ayesha, a trans woman, sought a separate seat or reservation policy for the trans community in the AIIMS Masters' of Science in Human Embryology course, ICMR, and all public employment and educational institutions.
“Despite clearing the entrance exam twice for AIIMS Delhi, and with very high scores, I could not secure a seat because I missed the cut-off by a few marks,” Ayesha says. As there are no separate cut-offs for the transgender community, she is considered unreserved and has to apply for a General category seat.
Following this, when she wrote to AIIMS, urging it to reserve a percentage of seats for the transgender community in line with the Supreme Court’s landmark NALSA Judgement, there was no response.
Therefore, through the petition, she challenges the exclusion of the transgender community in educational institutions and public companies, as well as the “inaction of the State in implementing a fair policy for the trans community”.
“It has been 10 years since the NALSA Judgement was passed, and there have been no substantial protections for us. We have been demanding affirmative action for the trans community, but not one government institution has implemented it. We only get half measures and temporary schemes, which offer us no guarantee,” laments Ayesha about the government’s apathy towards the transgender community.
As a result, the petition also highlights the need for horizontal reservation and relaxation for the transgender community in various employment opportunities/admission institutions.
“If you look at the staff in government institutions, you won’t find a single trans person employed. It is only cisgender men and women. Very rarely do you see transgender people,” says Jane Kaushik, a teacher and transgender rights activist.
To recall, Jane was denied a teaching position at the PV Modi School in Jamnagar, Gujarat, after she received the offer letter from the school, due to her identity as a trans woman. Currently, she is fighting a legal battle against two schools for sacking her due to her identity as a trans woman.
“Despite the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 and Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020, trans people are still being discriminated against in employment and education. The only way to correct this is through horizontal reservations,” she says, adding that the presence of transgender persons in the workplace and campus would aid greatly in the mainstreaming of the transgender community in India.
According to Diksha Dadu, the legal counsel of Ayesha, AIIMS, ICMR, and the Central and state governments were given time until March 28, 2024, and the case would resume in the court once they respond.
