SELF-IDENTIFICATION VS CERTIFICATION UNDER THE TRANSGENDER PERSONS (PROTECTION OF RIGHTS) ACT, 2019: A CONSTITUTIONAL ANALYSIS

The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 is an important enactment which aims at protecting the rights of transgenders in India in the wake of recognition of their gender identities in the landmark judgment in NALSA v. Union of India. Although NALSA clearly states that self-identification plays an important role in determining gender identity, the legal framework of the Act provides for the certification of transgender identity by administrative authorities. The present study aims at analysing the clash of ideas between self-identification of gender identity and the statutory process of certifying transgender identity provided under the Act. In addition to the above, the present paper attempts at examining the consistency of the procedure of certification with the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution of India. Although the legal provision for transgender identity in the Act is laudable, yet the statutory certification of it makes the procedure vulnerable to violation of the principle of self-identification as enunciated in NALSA.