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National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India

National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India (2014) is a landmark judgement of the Supreme Court of India, which declared transgender people the 'third gender', affirmed that the fundamental rights granted under the Constitution of India will be equally applicable to them, and gave them the right to self-identification of their gender as male, female or third gender.

This judgement has been distinguished as a major step towards gender equality in India.[1][2][3][4] Moreover, the court also held that because transgender people were treated as socially and economically backward classes, they will be granted reservations in admissions to educational institutions and jobs.

Parties

The National Legal Services Authority of India (NALSA) was the primary petitioner. It had been constituted with the primary objective of providing free legal aid services to the disadvantaged sections of Indian society.[5] The other petitioners in the matter were the Poojya Mata Nasib Kaur Ji Women Welfare Society, a registered society and NGO, and Laxmi Narayan Tripathy, a renowned Hijra activist.[6]

Bench

The case was heard before a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court, composed of Justice K.S. Panicker Radhakrishnan and Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri.[6] Justice Radhakrishnan had functioned as a Standing Counsel for a number of educational and social organizations and held appointments in the High Courts of Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir and Gujarat before his elevation to the Supreme Court.[7] Justice Sikri began legal practice in Delhi, specializing in Constitutional cases, Labour and Service matters, and Arbitration matters. Prior to his elevation to the Supreme Court, he held appointments in the Delhi High Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Judgement

The Court has directed Centre and State Governments to grant legal recognition of gender identity whether it be male, female or third-gender:

The Court notes that these declarations are to be read in light of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment Expert Committee Report on issues relating to transgender individuals.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ "India recognises transgender people as third gender". The Guardian. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  2. ^ McCoy, Terrence (15 April 2014). "India now recognizes transgender citizens as 'third gender'". Washington Post. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  3. ^ "Supreme Court recognizes transgenders as 'third gender'". Times of India. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
  4. ^ Mark E. Wojcik, Male. Female. Other. India Requires Legal Recognition of a Third Gender, 43:4 International Law News 1 (2014)(American Bar Association Section of International Law).
  5. ^ "About NALSA". NALSA. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ "Supreme Court of India - CJI & Sitting Judges". Archived from the original on 26 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
  8. ^ "Report of the Expert Committee on the Issues relating to Transgender Persons" (PDF). Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 21 July 2014.

External links