ANAMIKA Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Admit. Learned Government Pleader takes notice for R1. Latha Anand takes notice for R2. Issue notice to R3 andR4throughspeedpost.

(2.) Learned Counsel for the petitioner relied on the decision in National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India. 2 AIR 2014 SC 1863], wherein the Honourable Supreme Court has recognised transgender 'as a Gender identity'. It is contended that the petitioner's selfperceived gender identity is woman and after having undergone the surgery, she has been on hormone therapy for almost 5 years. As such, the petitioner should be permitted to participate in the competition in the category for woman.

(3.) It is my considered opinion that a transgender person is having equal right to participate in competitions. Here, in the absence of any category for participating transgender persons, the petitioner is seeking to participate in her identity as woman. If the organisers have not made arrangements for participating transgenders, then the petitioner will have to be permitted to participate in her chosen category.