The Upper House of Parliament today passed The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016. The Cabinet had cleared the Bill yesterday. The Bill aims to protect the rigthts of transgender people and provide them a legal status. It provides for punishment, including two years of imprisonment for atrocities committed against transgender people.
The Bill makes “forcibly removing clothes of a person of the transgender community, parading them naked or committing any act that is derogatory to human dignity, and compelling or enticing a transgender to beg or do similar forms of forced or bonded labour other than any compulsory service for public purposes imposed by government” an offence. Forcing a transgender person to leave the house/village/place of residence will also be treated as an atrocity and violence against them.
The Bill also enables transgender persons to claim reservation under the OBC category if they do not belong to the SC/ST category.
Sukhdeep Singh