— ✍️Shonali Samarth
On the night of March 13, 2026, as I was winding down after finishing my work, my phone began to vibrate incessantly with a flood of WhatsApp notifications. In a queer community group, the atmosphere was thick with panic and anxiety as members voiced their mounting concerns. When I and others asked what had happened, a file for the Transgender Protection Act was shared. While I was familiar with the existing law, the year on the document was 2026 instead of 2019, which immediately set off alarms. A sense of foreboding took hold, as I suspected the right-wing government had taken a drastic step. Upon reading the new "reformer bill," it felt as though the ground had been pulled from beneath me; the legislation effectively denies my legal existence. Under this new law, I would no longer be recognised as a woman or even a transgender person in this country.
While the world celebrates March 31 as International Transgender Visibility Day, in India, the occasion has been recast as a "Black Day." In a staggering window of just 18 days, the bill was rushed through the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and received presidential assent, becoming India’s new law while disregarding the human rights of the transgender community. As the specific implications of this legislation are already widely understood, there is little need for further elaboration. The mere thought of what the future holds under this law fills me with grief and fear, as it represents a daily violation of my fundamental human rights.
My name is Rasika (name changed for safety); I am a trans woman, and the right to determine my own identity should belong to me. As the World Health Organisation (WHO) states, gender identity is a self-determined human right that is largely independent of an individual’s biological sex.
I have socially transitioned and I maintain long hair. I am perceived as a woman by society, which means my social identity is "Woman." Until today, I never felt the need to undergo surgery to prove my identity as a trans woman, because self-identification was recognised as my human right. Personally, I do not wish to undergo any surgery that could be harmful to my health.
But now the government is forcing me to undergo various surgeries as a prerequisite for living my life as a woman. If I do not comply, I will face many hurdles.
When I travel, I use women’s public restrooms because I do not identify as a man and I do not even look like one. As there are no gender-neutral washrooms available, I always prefer using women’s restrooms. But now under this new law, my right to use these facilities will be completely prohibited.
Even during my college years, using women’s restrooms led to many conflicts and arguments that took a toll on my mental health. To avoid these situations, I stopped drinking water and many times even skipped classes entirely because the distress was so great. If these challenges existed even when self-identification laws were in place, I cannot imagine the struggles I will face during my further education.
The government currently recognises me as neither a woman nor a transgender person; instead, they assume my sex is my gender. While self-identification laws once protected my fundamental right to use women’s restrooms, the lack of gender-neutral alternatives will now force me into men’s washrooms. This will definitely trigger intense humiliation and gender dysphoria for me, along with the risk of getting sexually harassed. I ask if the government has considered these consequences, especially since police frequently refuse to even register complaints filed by trans women who have been victims of assault.
One’s identification documents are the most critical part of flying. At the airport, the Aadhaar card is checked several times to see if the person in the documents matches the person standing there; if they don't seem to match, one is completely barred from traveling. Under the new law, I won't be able to change any of my documents without undergoing surgery. I cannot afford surgery, nor do I have any desire to have it.
Now, when boarding a plane, my documents will list me as a man, but since I am socially transitioned, I look like a woman to the officials. The person in the ID and the person in front of them will appear to be different people, and I won't even be able to provide proof for why this difference exists, because that, too, would require surgery. So I could be stopped from traveling entirely. Since Aadhaar cards are also required for train travel, the same issue will arise there. Does this mean I won't be able to travel anywhere? Isn’t this a direct attack on my freedom?
Trans people face a lot of discrimination in daily life, especially when looking for work. Despite having talent and potential, many companies won't hire me because I am a trans woman. When I ask for feedback, they give excuses like "recruitment is closed" or "we’ll contact you next time." However, some multinational companies used to offer trans people jobs or internships in junior positions under DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) quotas. I once did a corporate internship under this quota, and I didn't need to provide any proof of being transgender because, with the right to self-identification, my existence was the only proof needed. That won't happen now; a medical board will decide my gender identity, and because of all these complications, many companies will stop hiring trans people, or they will demand letters from a magistrate or doctors to verify the person's identity. This will completely shut the door on job opportunities for me.
The government is claiming that cisgender people were misusing self-identification to benefit from trans-specific schemes. But I don't know a single trans woman who has received even a tiny bit of benefit from these government schemes. So, which schemes were being misused? By calling themselves transgender, people would only be inviting social ridicule. Many trans people hide their identity because they are terrified of discrimination, so who would be so foolish as to call themselves transgender just to endure that kind of treatment?
In the landscape of our society, communities like the Hijra, Kinnar, Jogta, and Aravani have long existed as distinct socio-cultural spaces. Joining them has traditionally been a deeply personal choice for a transgender person, often guided by the "Guru-Shishya" tradition. While I hold no personal biases toward these groups, I have never felt the desire to be a part of them.
My actual hesitation comes from a place of concern for my own safety and freedom. I watched a dear friend join the Kinnar community out of necessity; she simply couldn't undergo her surgeries while living in her family home. What she found there, however, was not the sanctuary she expected. She has faced ongoing abuse from her Guru, who has seized her earnings and forbidden her from seeing her parents. When she tried to walk away, she received death threats from her Guru. Today, she is struggling with depression and searching for an escape, yet she finds no help from the government or police, who often refuse to intervene in the community's internal affairs.
The weight of this reality has become even heavier under the new legislation. To be legally recognised as transgender, the law makes it mandatory for me to join one of these communities. This is a heartbreaking conflict for me: I want nothing more than to live with my parents for the rest of my life. Many Gurus restrict their shishyas from maintaining family ties; the government is effectively forcing a wedge between me and the people I love. I find myself questioning how the state can justify compelling me to leave my home. Isn't living as my true self alongside my parents a fundamental part of my freedom of expression?
We are left at a crossroads. Am I expected to simply suppress who I am and live a lie as a man? For me, that is an impossible path to take. However, the trans and broader queer community will not remain in the shadows. We will take this fight for our human rights all the way to the Supreme Court. It is a massive undertaking; this is a long battle, and we will do everything in our power to reclaim the rights that belong to us.
-The author is a Trans rights activist.