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Relief sought for Transgender Persons in Madhya Pradesh

Sandhya vs State of Madhya Pradesh and Ors | High Court of Madhya Pradesh - Jabalpur Bench | Status: Pending | |

Due to the present outbreak of COVID 19, Transgender Persons have not been able to earn any income. Therefore there is an urgent need for monetary assistance to be provided to transgender persons. With the situation of Transgender Persons becoming increasingly vulnerable in the whole country and a number of states, it is imperative that the state provide assistance for transgender persons. In this context no state other than Kerala has started programmes targeting transgender persons. Kerala through two government orders provided ration to transgender persons without an insistence on ration cards and also access to temporary housing. Though the Central Government through National Institute of Social Defence deposited a sum of Rs 4,500 for transgender persons across the country, it barely reached  4000 persons in the country. Comparing it with the numbers from National Census, 2011 this programme has barely covered less than 1% of the total transgender population in the country. Since then though a number of representation letters have been sent to various state governments and the central government, the state has failed to take action of any sort and refused to provide assistance, material or otherwise.

This petition in the Madhya Pradesh High Court asks for an immediate intervention in terms of monetary and material support by the state government. Since a number of transgender persons are unable to access necessary medication, pay their rent, access Anti Retroviral Drugs, access Hormones for which monetary support of any kind would be immensely helpful. there are over 29, 597 transgender persons in the state of Madhya Pradesh according to the National Census 2011. Without support from the state their lives are caught in a limbo, moreover in context of a number of transgender persons under the uncertainty of access to food or housing have lost their lives to suicide.


Attachments

    https://slic.org.in/uploads/2020/07-July/28-Tue/Transgender%20PIL.pdf
    https://slic.org.in/uploads/2020/07-July/28-Tue/Shivdyal%20PIL%20Final%20Order-.pdf