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Chennai to Get India’s First Transgender Sub Inspector
Posted On Nov 06 2015
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Blazing a trail through intricate government and judicial process, gritty transgender K Prithika Yashini has finally realized her dream of donning the uniform of a sub-inspector of police in Tamil Nadu police department. She had to fight a long legal fight to get things going her way. The first bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, directed Tamil Nadu Uniformed Services Recruitment (TNUSRB) to include transgenders as a “third category” by the next recruitment process is carried out. After completing her diploma in computer application, she came to the state capital Chennai in 2011, and underwent a sex-reassignment surgery with the support of local NGOs.
In the first go, her application was rejected due to the absence of “third gender category” in the state police recruitment board.. Manabi Bandyopadhyay (India’s first transgender college principal) and Akkai Padmashali (First transgender recipient of Rajyotsava award) are a couple of notable examples.
Felt heartbroken, she moved to Madras High Court.
Yashini was born and brought up as a boy named Pradeep Kumar.
After Yashini petitioned the Madras High Court to change her name, she was allowed to appear for the written examination. She also qualified in every single physical test. Just in the 100 meters dash, she was late by one second, yet that was acknowledged. In interviews, Yashini had described the challenges of training without a coach.
The Madras High Court declared the 25-year-old to be eligible to be appointed as a sub-inspector.
There are an estimated two million transgender people in India.
This is to note that by a Supreme Court of India in the year 2014 recognized transgender as the third gender and gave an order that the state and central governments have to take steps to treat transgender as socially and educationally backward citizens and extend them all kinds of reservation in the admissions to educational institutions and public appointments.
