“We Will Do Your DNA Test to See If You Are Really Ambedkar’s Daughter”- Shocking Casteist Attack on Dalit Trans Activist Grace Banu at Delhi Consultation

New Delhi- While the entire transgender community has been protesting for weeks against the controversial Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Act, 2026, a national consultation organised in Delhi on Friday turned ugly as it brought out the deep pangs of casteism within the community itself.

Grace Banu, a veteran Dalit and transgender rights activist, faced aggressive verbal attacks and an alleged attempt at physical intimidation during the event held at The Lalit Hotel on April 3. She shared her ordeal in a detailed statement posted on her social media x account.

Initially, the agenda for the consultation had placed Laxmi Narayan Tripathi (LNT), a well-known transgender rights activist, Bollywood actress, Bharatanatyam dancer, and Acharya Mahamandaleshwar of the Kinnar Akhada as the keynote speaker.

" Another Ambedkarite activist and I had objected regarding the same because of her Brahminical Hindutva ideology and hence refused to participate. Considering the objections, the organisers Humsafar Trust, KSF and Naz issued a revised agenda and subsequently I attended the event. During the consultation, Laxmi Narayan Tripathi started her speech invoking "Jai Shri Mahakaal" and "I am proud to be a Brahmin" to which I did not object at all. Further, I did not interrupt or comment while she spoke or later as well. She in fact called some of the young trans participants, her children," Bhanu stated.

According to Banu’s statement, the confrontation erupted after she greeted the gathering with “Jai Bhim!” and stated that “we are all grandsons and granddaughters of Babasaheb Ambedkar and Ramabai.” She also criticised the amendment act as a “Hindutva Brahminical patriarchal act.”

"The panel in which I spoke concluded close to lunch time. Subsequently, LNT wanted to comment. Despite being asked to wait by the moderator, Tripathi took the mic and shouted at me in an aggressive and casteist tone while directly naming me. She claimed as to how she is a Brahmin and how as much a victim of oppression as any Dalit", Laxmi reacted strongly according to Banu. She allegedly snatched the mic, shouted at Banu in a casteist tone, asserted her Brahmin identity, and claimed to be as much a victim of oppression as any Dalit.

When another participant, Koyel Ghosh, questioned Pasha’s behaviour, he allegedly grabbed their collar. Fellow panellists had to intervene to restrain him.

Banu maintained her calm throughout the incident. The organisers Humsafar Trust, KSF, and Naz Foundation, later apologised to her privately but maintained a neutral stand.

The Mooknayak reached out to Laxmi Narayan Tripathi seeking her comments and explanation on the serious allegations, but received no response. A member of the organiser group also declined to make any comment on the incident.

Grace Banu, a software engineer and India’s first transgender person admitted to an engineering college, is a prominent Dalit-trans activist and founder of the Trans Rights Now Collective. She has long advocated for intersectional rights, including reservations for Dalit and Bahujan transgender persons, and has been vocal in opposing the 2026 amendment bill.

This disturbing episode has once again exposed caste fault lines even within marginalised communities fighting for gender rights. A visibly shaken Grace Banu later wrote, “I am writing this with a broken heart… Till my last breath, I will continue to say that I am the granddaughter of Babasaheb and Ramabai. Jai Bhim! Jai Ramabai!”

Meanwhile, as per the latest update, a petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, challenging the constitutionality of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Act, 2026. The amendment was passed by the Parliament recently, taking away the right to self-determination of gender.