Bihar: Transgender Activist’s Petition in Court Paves Path for Third Gender Recruitment in State Police

Following a state Home Department order on January 14, the Bihar Police is all set welcome recruits from the transgender community. The state government notification said that the physical and educational qualification for transgender applicants will be the same as for women category while the age limit would be the same as for the SC/ST category.

NewsClick had earlier reported in December 2020, a legal petition was filed by transgender activist Veera Yadav for missing the column for third genders in the Bihar police constable exam application form. Veera is the first among transgender community to have completed Masters in Social Work (MSW).

The exam was to be conducted by the Central Selection Board of Constable (CSBC) for 8,415 posts that included- Bihar Police, Bihar Home Guard, Bihar Fire Service, Excise, Forest and Transport department.

As per the latest order, the state will reserve one seat for transgender for every 500 posts of constable and sub-inspector (SI) with separate notification. The Superintendent of Police (SP) will be the concerned official for the appointment of transgenders as Constable, while the Director Inspector General (DIG) is authorised to depute the SI. Appointment after selection would be done as per Bihar Police Manual 1978 (Amendment on Rules 663) that directs constable recruitment by Central Selection Board of Constable (CSBC).

Also read: ‘State-sponsored Exclusion’: Plea Filed against Missing ‘Third Gender’ Column in Bihar Constable Exam Form

The home department’s resolution dated January 14, 2021 also stated that government has ended the scope of raising separate battalion of transgenders and added that 1,000 personnel are required to raise a battalion, but the low population of third gender in the state restricts government from taking such a step. According to the 2011 Census, out of 10.41 crore population in Bihar, there are 40,827 transgenders, which translates to just 0.039% or 39 transgenders per 1 lakh population.

The decision on transgender recruitment comes in the backdrop of Patna High Court pulling up the Bihar Government on its exclusionary approach towards transgenders. Last month, while hearing Veera’s plea, the bench led by Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S. Kumar had rebuked the government’s stance terming it precluding of transgenders from the process of applying for a post of a constable. 

After the legal hearing, the issue of raising a separate third gender battalion in the police started doing rounds but it was retracted later.

Meanwhile, the decision of including transgenders in the state police has been welcomed by the community but with concerns surrounding its fate. The petitioner and transgender activist Veera Yadav while reacting to the government’s decision told NewsClick, “We thank judiciary for favouring our demand and appreciate government’s move but it should not be the end. Our queries on separate battalion are unanswered as per government’s oath in the court. Government’s justification on not having a battalion due to less population is a clear deviation from previous commitment. The decision should be based on 2021 Census data that will show our exact population.”

“They have backtracked from the previous stance of fostering a bigger chance to our community too. When reservation for disabled, freedom fighters and women is not based on their population why reservation to us should not follow same?” she questioned, adding, “Instead of battalion, recruitment on two posts will limit our reach and bracket our fate.”

She also emphasised that the Bihar government must implement the decision strictly as per 2014 NALSA judgment and aim to have no backlog in recruiting third genders.

Notably, Bihar Police has the highest percentage of women in the country i.e. 25.3% and last year the government had decided to raise a ‘Swabhiman Vahini’ of tribal women and girls in the state police. After Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu, Bihar is the third state to include transgenders in the state police.

Talking about their inclusion, Bihar’s Director General of Police (DGP) said, “Transgenders are society’s integral part and if less number of transgender candidates are recruited against available reserved posts then remaining would be filled by general candidate.”

The petitioner’s advocate Deepak Kumar Singh of the Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) while commenting on the recent development termed the decision as affirmative action in favour of transgenders but equally raised his concerns over government’s narrow approach by not opting to raise battalion citing less population. He said that 40,827 transgenders count as per 2011 census will increase in forthcoming 2021 census so dumping the battalion idea due to low population count will be an error of the policy itself. A battalion could have provided a chance to third gender community to align strongly with mainstream society.

Reshma Prasad, secretary of Dostana Safar, a Patna-based NGO, also welcomed the decision favoring the community and said it is precious earned victory for rights of third gender community.