Transgender Bill gets LS nod amid Oppn protest

Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, August 5

As Home Minister Amit Shah surprised opponents in the Rajya Sabha, the Lok Sabha continued with business as usual with the government introducing a Bill to amend the Chit Funds Act, 1982. The House also cleared amendments passed by the Rajya Sabha to the Motor Vehicles Act and the National Medical Commission Bill and passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2019, to provide a mechanism for social, economic and educational empowerment to them.

While Opposition parties continued with protests for most part of the morning session over the dramatic turn of events (on the Kashmir issue) in the Upper House, LS Speaker Om Birla did not adjourn the House. Amid the sloganeering against the “high-handedness” of the government, Birla carried on with the business as usual, ticking off the listed business of the day in the House.

Some protesting members of the Congress, the DMK and the Left also sat in the Well. Supporting the Bill, some Opposition leaders, including TMC MP Satabdi Roy, managed to speak. Her colleague Kalyan Banerjee, who too expressed support to the legislation, however, could not. “Since the agitation is on the Kashmir issue, let it be discussed first. This is my request to you,” he asked the Speaker who replied a firm “No”. The Bill was passed by a voice vote amid protests by some Opposition parties over Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury not being allowed to speak on an adjournment notice.

However, a contentious provision that criminalised begging by transgender people has been removed from the Bill. The provision was part of the Bill when it was introduced by the previous government.

Its provisions

• The Bill makes provision for establishing a national authority for safeguarding rights of transgenders
• It also provides for penalty and punishment in cases of offences and sexual harassment against them
• A contentious provision that criminalised begging by transgender people has been removed from the legislation

4.8 lakh transgenders in country as per 2011 census