'Decide representation to recognise transgender as 3rd gender for bus travel'

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed the city government to take a decision within four months on representations seeking legal recognition of the transgender community as the third gender for the purpose of travelling on the buses operated by the Delhi Transport Corporation.The court passed the order on a public interest litigation by a person belonging to the transgender community who has sought printing of the words 'third gender' on bus tickets and cost-free travel for transgenders on DTC buses.

The petition is disposed of with a direction to the respondent to take a decision as expeditiously as possible within a period of four months, said a bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad.

Lawyer Amit George, appearing for the petitioner, informed that while dealing with a similar petition earlier, the high court had already asked the authorities to look at the issue but no decision has been taken till date.

He said the petitioner also made a representation in August 2022 to the authorities but received no reply.

Delhi government counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi submitted the government will certainly take a decision in the matter.

The bench granted liberty to the petitioner to approach the court again, if required.

The petitioner has said the DTC tickets issued at present recognise only two genders--male and female, and there is no recognition of people belonging to the transgender community. The plea said the petitioner regularly commutes by buses operated by the DTC and faces "trauma and agony while purchasing ticket as the transgender community has not been recognised as the third gender. The plea contended that transgender people should ideally be recognised as the third gender as they have the right to decide their self-identified gender.