New Delhi, July 5 (Inditop.com) “We are not criminals, never were,” a member of the capital’s abused and suppressed transgender community said as the group erupted in joy after hearing of the Delhi High Court’s decision to decriminalize consensual sex between consenting adults.
“I am so happy! I have been celebrating the court’s judgement since Thursday. I participated at the gay parade at Connaught Place. Then I went to Nabi Karim (in central Delhi) where many kinnars (eunuchs) live and we danced all night!” an overjoyed Mangala told IANS.
“The time has come for us to come out in the open and be who we are and we won’t be considered criminals,” said Mangala, a peer-outreach officer with the NGO Sahara’s transgender project.
For long this community has been complaining of being falsely implicated in criminal cases and being harassed by the police.
“We joked that we can openly engage in sex and the police can’t catch us – because if they do so we can always say that what we are doing is no crime and we have the court’s consent,” stated a eunuch from Seelampur, northeast Delhi, on condition of anonymity.
The Delhi High Court ruled Thursday that sex among consenting adults of the same sex was no crime, triggering celebrations among gay activists and the LGBT (lesbian,gay, bisexual and transgender) community.
The court repealed Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), emphasising that the constitution guaranteed homosexuals equal rights as other citizens. The bench also said the judgement would hold till parliament amended the law.
The judgement did lead to some confusion, however, especially among those eunuchs who are semi-literate or illiterate.
“There are some vague notions in the community – many are uneducated and were pleased with what they saw in the headlines, not going into the details. They assumed it allowed ‘kinnar’ marriages and began celebrating. But that is not the case,” said Malti Mehra, head of the transgender community project for Sahara.
Prema, another eunuch from Seelampur, said that the judgement had several members of the community in doubt. “I am overjoyed – but you can expect angry voices from many. It is causing a good deal of ruckus.”
According to Prema, many are sceptical about the judgement because “eunuchs living a life of secrecy may get encouraged to come out in the open, but it can strain the relationships between them and their parents, who could snap all ties. Losing your family is what is feared most.”
“Being a part of the kinnar community is looked down upon in Indian society – they live in shoddy conditions, abused and suppressed – so their movement for freedom has a long way to go,” Mehra explained.
Although there is no official data about the number of eunuchs in India, it is estimated to be 1.2 million. Their traditional role in society has been of dancers, prostitutes and beggars.
Eunuchs want policies that acknowledge their existence, like giving them an official gender status of the third sex, and health checks in hospitals where they are often denied entry. They also want the same job opportunities as everyone else.
Asked whether the judgement would help the AIDS awareness programmes of Sahara, Mehra said: “It’s too early to comment; let’s see what the government decides.”
A group of eunuchs had moved the Supreme Court Jan 20, seeking their rights to education, social and political rehabilitation. The petition filed by Sonam Singh, a eunuch from Ajmer, sought direction to the union government to constitute a National Kinnar Ayog or commission on the lines of those for dalits and tribals.
In February, the apex court dismissed the plea and directed Singh to approach the home ministry, where the matter is ‘under consideration’.