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Activist and Sahodari Foundation founder Kalki Subramaniam resigned as the Southern States representative of the National Council for Transgender Persons (NCTP) in protest against the passage of the new bill that redefines the term 'transgender' and omits people's rights to self-perceived gender identity that was existing in the 2019 Act.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill, 2026, was introduced and passed in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha recently, sparking debates across the country. https://x.com/QueenKalki/status/2036812897167515789 In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kalki stated that she had submitted her resignation, saying, "I have officially resigned as the Southern States Representative of the National Council for Transgender Persons (NCTP). The Ministry passed the #TransgenderAmendmentBill2026 without consulting the Council." She added, "I cannot hold a seat where our voices are silenced. I stand with my community." On Wednesday, the Rajya Sabha MP passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill 2026, amending the original 2019 Act, with a voice vote. The Bill was passed amid the Opposition's demand for the Bill to be sent to the Select Committee. The Bill was introduced by the Social Justice and Empowerment Minister, Virendra Kumar. The Bill alters the definition of transgender person to exclude several individuals. According to the statement of the objects and reasons for the bill, it is the legislative policy to recognise a specific class of transgender persons, who face social issues and to create a regime for their protection. The legislative policy was and is intended to protect only those who face severe social exclusion due to biological reasons for no fault of their own and no choice of their own. The definition of a transgender person as per the Bill reads, "a person having such socio-cultural identities as kinner, hijra, aravani and jogta, or eunuch, or a person with intersex variations specified below or a person who, at birth, has a congenital variation in one or more of the following sex characteristics as compared to male or female development:-- (a) primary sexual characteristics; (b) external genitalia; (c) chromosomal patterns; (d) gonadal development; (e) endogenous hormone production or response, or such other medical conditions." The Bill also includes transgender persons coerced into their gender identity by any sort of force; however, it excludes people's rightsto self-perceived gender identity, as Section 3 of the Amendment Bill omits Section 4(2) of the 2019 Act. The amendments empower the District Magistrate to issue a certificate of identity after taking the assistance of other medical experts, if needed. (ANI)
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