Gender: meaning, types and recent developments:

A society is made up of many elements and all these elements contribute together to the functioning of the society, these are such elements without which an autonomous society cannot be imagined. Generally gender means and includes ‘he’ and ‘she’ i.e. male and female section of the society, Section 8 of the IPC gives us the definition of Gender and states that – the pronoun, “he” & its derivates mentioned in the Indian Penal Code is used for both male and female. As already stated above, it is an important section of the society, both have their own importance and without even one section i.e. either male or female, a society cannot grow further. Few years ago gender was only limited to ‘male’ and ’female’ but now the time has changed and the term gender is not limited to ‘male’ and ’female’ and a third gender has been recognized and accepted by the society. In a landmark Judgment of National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India (2014) the Hon’ble Supreme Court recognised transgender as a third gender and also affirmed equal applicability of fundamental rights given under the Constitution of India and gave them the right to self-identification of their gender as male, female or third gender. As per the section 2((k) of the Transgender Persons (protection of rights) Act, 2019 “transgender persons” are those persons whose gender is different from normal persons i.e. they are neither complete male nor complete female, either by birth or by surgery and also socially known and called as kinner, hijra, aravani and jogta.

Psychology aspects of transgender:

In Indian society a person with special character or special quality is always considered different from other normal persons and so the same thing exist in case of a transgender. Male and Female as a gender are normal but a transgender or we can say a third gender is not normal for everyone, they are pronounced with so many different names, and also they are not given enough respect just because they are transgender. Transgender people are more at risk of depression, stress and anxiety, because of their being a members of a gender minority population. It is difficult for Transgender people to affirm gender identity as well as facing the social and physical challenges. For all this it requires courage and support from loved once along with some hard steps. Here, psychologists can play an invaluable role. This is only possible by assisting them in establishing their identity at all levels i.e at personal, social levels . at present the truth is that transgender persons are seen with hatred As per census 2011, there are around 4.9 lakh third genders in the country who faces social discrimination and harassment.

Situation of transgender in India:

It is a bitter truth that it was not easy for transgender to disclose their identity as transgender due to social stigmas and fear of discrimination before 2014, it was possible because of the above given judgement, but still their situation is not enough good. These people are still facing discrimination in jobs in both government and private sectors, so they roam on the streets, trains begging around. They do not get even the basic health facilities which lead them to get affected by STIs and other severe health problems. Therefore, they earn their livelihood by dancing, singing and begging. Most of them come under SC and ST category which is declared as the backward class in India. They are also indulged into sex work. However now they are recognised legally but the social perspective about transgender is not much changed, so the situation of third gender is not much changed even after recognition and is still worst.

Transgenders rights in India

As we have discussed above that the transgenders have been recognized as third gender hence they have the same rights and dignity in the society which a male and female have and these rights are given to them by the legislature in Transgender Persons (protection of rights) Act, 2019, these rights include their right of Prohibition against discrimination, Recognition of their identity as transgender, Non-discrimination in employment, Right of residence etc. The act explains these rights in detail as:

Prohibition against discrimination:

Section 3 of the act prohibits discrimination against transgender, it says that there shall be no discriminate against a transgender person in case of:

• Education,
• Employment or occupation,
• Healthcare services,
• Use of any goods, accommodation, service, facility, benefit, privilege or opportunity which is provided to the general public,
• Right of movement;
• Right to reside, purchase, rent, or occupy any property;
• The opportunity to stand for or hold public or private office; and
• Unfair treatment in, Government or private establishment in whose care or custody a transgender person may be

Recognition of their identity as transgender:

A transgender person shall have the right to be recognised as a transgender as per section 4 of the act says that a transgender person shall have a right to be recognised as a transgender and have a right to self-perceived gender identity

Non-discrimination in employment:

Section 9 of the act prohibits discrimination against transgender in the matter of employment and says” No establishment shall discriminate against any transgender person in any matter relating to employment including, but it is not limited to, recruitment, promotion and other related issues”.

Right of residence:

Section 12 of Transgender Persons (protection of rights) Act, 2019 gives transgender person the right of residence i.e. right to right to live in the household with his parent or family members,right not to be excluded and right to enjoy the facilities in the household etc as:

Provided that as per sub-section(1) No child shall be separated from parents or immediate family due to his being a transgender, except where there is an order of the competent court, for the benefit of the child.

In case parent or a member of his immediate family is unable to take care of a transgender, the competent court shall send that person in rehabilitation centre.

Legal Process of changing of gender:

The gender change procedure in India is a lengthy and multi staged process and only certified plastic surgeon is empowered to perform such surgery. The process to change the gender is not limited to various medical steps but it includes legal steps also. Some provisions of the act deals with the process before and after surgery which are as:

An application may be made by a transgender to the District Magistrate for issuing a certificate of identity as a transgender person, along with prescribed documents and in the case of a minor child, it shall be made by a parent or guardian of such child. (Section 5)

Section 6. Issue of certificate of identity

A certificate of identity as transgender person to be issued to the applicant by the District Magistrate after following such procedure and in such form and manner, within such time, which shows and indicates the gender of such person as transgender and the same thing shall be recorded in all official documents as per the certificate issued under sub-section (1) of section 6. And this certificate issued to a person under sub-section (1) shall confer rights and be a proof of recognition of his identity as a transgender person.

Section 7. Change in gender

After the issuance of certificate as per section 6(1) , the applicant will undergone a surgery for gender change either as a male or female and will again apply to the District Magistrate for revised certificate along with the medical certificate issued by Medical Superintendent or Chief Medical Officer of the medical institution in which that person has undergone surgery and again a revised certificate indicating the change of gender will be issued by the District Magistrate and also the applicant shall be entitled to change the first name in the birth certificate and all other official documents relating to the identity of such person:

Provided that all this process shall not affect the rights and entitlements of such person in any manner.

The above provisions talk about the issuance of certificate of gender,now it is importamt to know about the documents required for change of gender, which are as:

• Self attested ID card of the applicant
• Birth Certificate
• Medical certificate confirming the applicant’s gender change
• Model format of document
• A signed copy of the affidavit from the gazette office for gender change
• A self-declaration form

After getting all these documents and certificates the applicant need to draft an affidavit stating about change in gender and publish it alongwith other documents, in the local circulating newspaper about the change in gender and Gazette publication is required in changing educational documents and bank account Details. If the applicant wants to get these details changed then the applicant should go ahead with this step. It is better to go for a Central Gazette Publication instead of a State Gazette as it holds a higher legal value, it will take 45-60 days to appear in e-gazette subject to verification process.