New Delhi/Chennai - Kalki Subramaniam, Member and Southern Region Representative of the National Council for Transgender Persons (NCTP), has submitted her resignation to Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Dr. Virendra Kumar. She cited the recent passage of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill 2026 in the Lok Sabha as the primary reason, describing the bill as regressive and a direct attack on the community’s rights to self-identification and dignity.

Kalki is India's transgender trailblazer who rewrote history. She is the first trans woman to lead an Indian film and a key voice behind 2014 Supreme Court trans rights ruling.

In her resignation letter dated March 25, Kalki Subramaniam expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve but stated that the Ministry’s decision to push the bill forward without any formal consultation with NCTP members or transgender community representatives had made her position untenable.

She wrote: “As a statutory representative, my primary mandate is to advise the Government on legislation affecting our lives. The decision to move this Bill forward without any formal consultation with myself or other community representatives of the NCTP undermines the very purpose for which this Council was established.”

Kalki Subramaniam highlighted that after extensive consultations with transgender and intersex communities across Southern India and the rest of the country, there is complete consensus that the Amendment Bill 2026 is a step backward for the community’s fundamental rights.

“As a representative of lakhs of community members, I cannot in good faith continue to hold a seat at a table where our collective voice has been silenced on a matter of such existential importance,” she stated firmly. “My first and final loyalty lies with the people I represent.”

She further emphasized that remaining in the post while a bill strongly opposed by the community is passed would compromise her integrity and betray the trust placed in her.

In a poignant conclusion to her resignation letter, Kalki quoted lines from her poem ‘The War’ from the book We Will Not Be Erased:

“She is a raging warrior, this is her battle for survival, her battle for dignity and respect, for herself, for people like her, for every silenced voice, against an unequal world, for a world she dreams, for a world that gleams.”

She expressed hope that the principle of “Nothing About Us, Without Us” would genuinely guide the Ministry’s future actions toward justice and inclusion.

Controversy Surrounding Transgender Bill 2026

The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill 2026 has sparked widespread criticism from the transgender community. Key concerns include dilution of self-identification rights, introduction of mandatory medical board examinations, and narrowing of the definition of transgender persons — measures seen as going against the spirit of the 2014 NALSA Supreme Court judgment and constitutional protections.

The bill has already been passed in the Lok Sabha and is currently under discussion in the Rajya Sabha.

Meanwhile, a Supreme Court-constituted Advisory Committee headed by former Delhi High Court judge Justice Asha Menon has sent a resolution to the central government , requesting that the Bill be withdrawn.

Kalki Subramaniam’s resignation is being viewed as a significant blow and a strong signal of discontent within the community. Reports suggest other NCTP members may also step down in protest.

This development highlights the growing rift between the transgender rights movement and the government’s approach to policy-making on issues directly affecting the community.