The Allahabad High Court has ruled that passport authorities cannot require a transgender person to undergo a fresh medical examination to change their gender details on passports, once the district magistrate has issued a certificate recognizing their gender change [Khush R Goel v Union of India and 3 Others].

A Division Bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Siddharth Nandan observed that such a demand for a fresh medical exam is without any firm legal foundation and would violate the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, under which the district magistrate is empowered to issue gender change certificates.

The Court explained that the law requires a district magistrate to issue a certificate recognizing the gender change to an applicant who submits a certificate issued by the Medical Superintendent or Chief Medical Officer.

The said gender change certificate entitles transgender persons to have their name and gender changed accordingly in all official documents, including their passports, the Court held.

“The Special Act was legislated in order to give an element of protection to transgender persons, who on account of circumstances beyond their control were born into bodies not aligned with their identities. The social ostracism of such people had led the Parliament to enact special Statute. By the enforcement of the said Statute, even transgender persons are now entitled to dignity and equal rights. They no longer have to hide their identity, which are contrary to their innate personalities. In this regard, Section 5 and 6 provide for the manner in which they can legitimize the status as transgender,” the Court added.

The Court found that the petitioner, who was born female and later underwent a gender change surgery to become male, had followed the legal process, leading to issuance of a new certificate under Rule 6 of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020, read with Section 7 of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019.

Despite this, the passport authorities had asked the petitioner to undergo a fresh medical exam from a clinic on their panel before the gender change could be updated in the passport.

This turn of events was challenged by the petitioner before the High Court, which ruled in his favour.

“It is specifically stated that in Clause 5 … the (gender change) certificate entitles a holder to change name and gender in all official documents. Official documents in this regard, would also include all such document, which had to be filed with the State or any entity of the State for the purpose of identity of the person under the statutory provision,” the Court said in its February 10 ruling.

It added that “official documents” in this regard would also include the passport.

“There is no requirement for the petitioner to produce any further documents before the passport authorities and the passport authority is called to act or issue a passport in the light of the documents at page nos. 50 and 51 of the petition. No further document is required as far as proof of identity and gender of the petitioner is concerned,” the Court ordered. 

Advocate Kavindra Dwivedi represented the petitioner,

Advocate Vaibhav Tripathi represented the respondents.

[Read Judgment]