Parliament passes bill to amend transgender law; two members of TG People’s Council resign in protest

New Delhi: A day after Parliament approved the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2026, two National Transgender Commission members from the community submitted their resignations to the Social Justice Minister as opposition lawmakers demanded that the bill be referred to a standing committee for wider consultations Virendra Kumar There was an outcry against the bill and lack of consultation. The bill proposes a more precise definition of “transgender,” making clear that it does not include people with “different sexual orientations and self-perceived sexual identities.”Rituparna Neog, a council member from the Northeast region, said in her resignation letter to Kumar, chairperson of the statutory body, which is supposed to have around 10 members representing the transgender community, “Some in the NCTP have tried to reach out to you as the voice of the community but we feel our voices are not being heard.”Another member who resigned, Kalaki Subramaniam, who represents the southern region, voiced strong protest at the lack of consultation with the community, who viewed the bill as a “retrograde step” and “a step back in their fundamental rights to self-identity and dignity”. “I cannot continue to have a seat at the table where our collective voices are silenced,” she added.The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, was passed in the Union House on Wednesday by voice vote. The Congress’s Renuka Chowdhury opened the discussion with a provocative question: “If no one asks us – men and women – to prove our gender before a medical board, then who are we to question the identity of a transgender person?”At the end of the discussion, Minister Virendra Kumar reiterated that the bill aims to provide protection only to those who face severe social discrimination due to their biological conditions. “ Members of the Bharatiya Janata Party also joined the chorus to express their support.The amendments, which will become law with the assent of the President of India, mark a major departure from the existing law as it omits provisions allowing “self-perceived gender identity” as a basis for self-determination and approval of transgender certificates by magistrates.A medical board headed by the chief medical officer was introduced and the district magistrate will issue transgender status certificate after reviewing the recommendations of the medical board, known as the “authority” set up by the central or state government.The Bill proposes to create specific offenses with graduated penalties to reflect the seriousness of the harm, the irreversibility of the harm and the particular vulnerability of child victims.DMK’s Tiruchi Siva introduced a Private Member’s Bill ‘Transgender Rights Bill 2014’, reflecting on the community’s struggle for rights and seeking consultation from stakeholders, legal experts, civil society, transgender community and review by a select committee. Manoj Kumar Jha (RJD), Saket Gokhale (TMC), CPI (M) MP John Brittas, NCP-SCP leader Fauzia Khan, Jaya Bachchan (SP), Shiv Sena-UBT’s Priyanka Chaturvedi, Sanjay Singh Sandeep Pathak of AAP and Abdul Wahab of IUML were among those who strongly opposed the bill.Even YSR Congress Party’s Golla Babu Rao and BJD’s Subhasish Khuntia joined other opposition members in calling for the bill to be referred to a parliamentary committee for stakeholder consultations.The first signs of community backlash emerged shortly after the bill passed the Federal House, with the resignation of two NCTP members. Since the bill was introduced, community members have been agitating through press conferences and outreach events and now plan to take to the streets with demonstrations across the states. In his resignation letter to the Social Justice and Empowerment Minister, Kalki Subramaniam said, “Till February 2026, my experience of working with departmental officials was one of mutual respect and a shared vision for an inclusive India. However, the recent introduction and passage of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2026, has left me with an untenable position.”“As legal representative, my main role is to advise the government on legislation that affects our lives. The decision to move forward with this bill without any formal consultation with myself or other community representatives at NCTP defeats the purpose of the committee,” she added. Rituparna Neog expressed her opposition to the bill passed by Parliament at the time of her resignation, saying: “While I understand that as a member of the NCTP I have a responsibility to represent the voice of the community to the competent authorities, however, given the current circumstances, I wish not to continue as a member.”On Saturday, four NCTP members Abhina Aher, Vidya Rajput, Raveena Bareeha and Subramaiam strongly reiterated at a meeting convened by senior officials of the ministry on Saturday that “self-affirmation of transgender identity must remain the basis of transgender identity, as upheld in the NALSA judgment”.After the meeting, members highlighted the absence of Social Justice Minister Virendra Kumar, who they were told would chair the meeting. “We were informed that the minister was unable to attend due to ill health and a reported family emergency,” Aher said.According to Akh, at a meeting chaired by joint secretary Yogita Swaroop, the ministry’s senior economic adviser, government officials raised concerns about identifying “genuine” transgender people and mentioned biomarkers such as chromosomal combination (XX/XY). “NCTP members clarified the concepts of gender nonconformity/dysphoria, mental health aspects, and the impact of stigma, although they felt there were gaps in officials’ understanding of transgender issues,” she added.TG council members also stressed at the meeting that the definition of transgender in the bill is not inclusive and must clearly include both trans men and trans women; use respectful terminology and recognize different regional identities, such as Nupi Manabi and Nupi Mamba (Manipur).Regarding the provision in the bill to introduce medical boards for screening, NCTP members initially called for the provision to be deleted. “However, given the government’s position, members recommended that any assessment should be limited to mental health support, should not involve an invasive medical examination, and should be dignified and consistent with the NALSA judgment,” Aher said. The need for gender-neutral laws to address violence against trans people has also been strongly raised.Now, as the bill was passed in Parliament without heeding any suggestions made by NCTP member representatives, the community has announced protests and demonstrations starting from Thursday.