Activists Petition Supreme Court on Transgender Rights Amendment

Transgender rights activists in India have filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the Transgender Persons Protection of Rights Amendment Act, 2026, which removes the right to self-perceived gender identity and mandates certification by a medical board and district magistrate for legal recognition.

The amendment, passed by the Lok Sabha on March 24 and the Rajya Sabha on March 25, received President Droupadi Murmu's assent on March 30. It revises the 2019 Transgender Persons Protection of Rights Act by narrowing the definition of transgender persons to those with specific biological or medical conditions, abandoning the earlier emphasis on personal self-identification. The law also introduces penal provisions against compelling someone to adopt a transgender identity, aiming to address coercion and exploitation.

The petition, filed by activists Laxmi Narayan Tripathi and Zainab Patel, who were lead petitioners in the landmark 2014 National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) v. Union of India case, argues that the changes violate fundamental rights under Articles 14, 15, 19, and 21 of the Constitution, which guarantee equality,...