NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has sought the Centre’s stand on a petition raising the issue of respect of recognition, rights for employment, and recruitment in public appointments, including teaching posts, for the transgender community.
Dealing with the plea moved by a 28-year-old transgender person, a single judge bench of Justice Prathiba Singh said the petition raises an important issue. The petitioner Jane Kaushik, a transgender person, stated that while applying for a teaching position for government schools in Delhi, the Delhi Subordinate Staff Selection Board (DSSSB)’s online portal did not permit her to apply under the transgender category.
After the plea was filed, DSSSB placed on record its affidavit along with the screenshot of its Online Application Registration System portal, which now clearly identifies male or female, or transgender in the field of gender.
The petitioner’s counsel further said that this would not be sufficient to take care of the issues raised by the petitioner, in as much as, so long as the vacancies notices circulated by the DSSSB continue to mention gender as male or female, the petitioner would choose on the portal the transgender category but still be forced to apply in a vacancy, which is either for male or female candidates or for vacancies where no gender is mentioned. It is her submission that this would be discriminatory and would be violative of the provisions of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, it was submitted.
The petitioner also pointed out that Department of Social Welfa re, GNCTD has itself recognized the position and has suggested relaxation given to the extent of age relaxation of five years and qualifying marks of 5 per cent.
The Delhi Government said the Department of Social Welfare had sent a communication to the Under Secretary (UT), Ministry of Home Affairs, on March 2, 2022, and another addressed to the Joint Secretary (UT), MHA, on December 2, 2021.