Bureaucratization of Transgender Rights: Perspective from the Ground

The Supreme Court directive in National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India brought in a transformative change by granting legal recognition to transgender1 persons. The Court issued several dicta, aiming to provide rights to transgender people and protect them from discrimination. The case marked a landmark shift in the legal regime, previously often characterized by the constant persecution and denial of rights to transgender persons. Yet, there have been multiple records indicating that the Supreme Court orders have not been adequately implemented by the states in India. To monitor and record the progress in various states, the Centre for Health Law, Ethics and Technology, JGLS initiated the RTI mechanism. Eleven questions, modeled on the Supreme Court directives in the case, were asked to several departments of all states. The responses received have been presented in a tabular form, accompanied by analysis comparing the responses to media reports about measures taken by various states to implement the Supreme Court decision. The uneven implementation of the Supreme Court directives in various states and union territories is telling, and reiterates the gap that exists between a landmark judgment and its implementation on the ground. The responses indicate that though states have taken positive steps in some fields, action remains lacking in others. We further detail the contradictions in the replies presented by a few states, and the difficulties we faced in initiating the RTI mechanism. This information can be utilized by activists and other relevant civil society actors to engage with their respective state departments in advocacy efforts.