Division Bench Of Kerala HC Sets Aside Direction To Amend NCC Act To Accommodate Transgender Students, Expresses Hope That Third Gender Will Be Included In NCC

A Divison Bench of the Kerala High Court has partly allowed an appeal filed by the National Cadet Corps (NCC) and has set aside the direction issued by the Single Judge of the Court to amend the National Cadet Corps Act, 1948 to accommodate transgender students.

The Court has upheld the direction to permit the Petitioner in the case, a transgender girl, to participate in the selection process of the NCC in her college. 

The Bench of Justice Amit Rawal and Justice CS Sudha observed in the Judgment, "We are hopeful and confident that the Central Government would rise to the occasion in the light of the dictum of the Apex Court in National Legal Services Authority (Supra) and the provisions of the Transgenders Act and take steps expeditiously to include the third gender also within the scope of Section 6 of the Act." 

Advocate N.S. Daya Sindhu Shree Hari appeared for the NCC while Advocates Thomas Abraham, Raghul Sudheesh and others appeared for the Respondents.

The Petitioner in the writ petition secured admission for B.A. History course in the University College, Thiruvananthapuram under the special category of transgender. The Petitioner was assigned male gender at the time of birth. The Petitioner underwent multiple sex reassignment surgeries from male to female. Earlier the Petitioner's name was 'Muhammed Ashif Ali N.' and after the sex reassignment surgery, the name was changed to 'Hina Haneefa'. 

The Petitioner applied for enrolment in the NCC in her college, which was not permitted by the NCC, citing that the NCC Act only permitted enrolment of girls and boys. 

The Single Judge while allowing the writ petition had held that the Petitioner who had opted for the female gender and had undergone sex reassignment surgeries for aiding her self perception as a member of the said gender would be entitled to enrollment in the NCC unit reckoning her as a transgender and further as a member of her self perceived gender.

"In the light of Ext.P3, when the petitioner has been given the identity of a female, she is certainly entitled to be enrolled in the NCC under Section 6(2) of the Act; in the light of the aforesaid provisions of the Transgenders Act and also in the light of the dictum laid down by the Apex Court in NLSA (Supra)", the Division Bench held. 

Accordingly, the Court partly allowed the appeal and the relief granted to the Petitioner permitting her to participate in the selection process on the basis of her application as a student belonging to the female gender and in the event of her succeeding in the selection process, to be enrolled in the NCC unit of the respondent college was confirmed. 

Cause Title: National Cadet Corps & Ors. v. Hina Haneefa & Ors. Neutral Citation Number: 2024:KER:15417

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