Akansha Upadhyay
Published on: 18 November 2022 at 20:35 IST
Nearly five years after the formation of the Transgender Welfare Board, the Punjab and Haryana High Court asserted that it was necessary to ensure that such bodies have teeth and do not merely have cosmetic value.
Making it clear that there was a need to hold meetings more frequently, Justice Sudhir Mittal of the high court also directed the board chairman to be present in person on December 15 – the next date for the hearing on the issue.
Bringing up the matter to Justice Mittal’s notice after a petition was filed by a transgender community, aggrieved by the non-availability of hostel accommodation even after the grant of admission to a postgraduate course at Punjab University.
The Court asserted the facts of the case showed a transgender had to approach the court as proper hostel accommodation was not being provided at Punjab University. Subsequently, the petitioner was housed in the working women’s hostel. It temporarily took care of the situation. But a larger issue remained to be addressed.
Justice Mittal observed that:
“Non-availability of hostel facilities, the right of the petitioner against discrimination was violated as was the right to acquire education on a par with others. In this regard, the petitioner submitted the complaint to the UT Administration also, no but the relief was granted.”
“Thus, it is essential to ensure that bodies such as the Transgender Welfare Board acquire teeth and do not retain cosmetic features. Meetings should be held more frequently so that issues likely to arise in the future can be anticipated,”
The observation came after Justice Mittal’s Bench was told that the welfare board was constituted in 2017, before passing the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, of 2019. The board had held seven meetings to date and taken major steps to sensitise people.
Online training programmes have been conducted for this purpose and increasing awareness in the government departments concerned. An anti-discrimination cell had also been set up in Punjabi University, apart from the provision for toilets and other steps taken for their medical welfare.
Justice Mittal had earlier asked the university to act independently after it said a final decision on the hostel accommodation for transgender would be taken only after receiving guidelines from the UT Administration.
Virtually rapping the university for its stand, the bench had asserted it was expected to be alive to the challenges that had arisen following the acceptance of ‘transgender’ as a separate sex and they coming forward to pursue higher education and becoming an inclusive part of society.