The Delhi High Court has been informed by the city government that about 505 toilets which were meant for persons with disabilities have now been designated to transgenders. The Delhi administration stated in response to a petition asking for guidelines on how to develop separate public restrooms for transgender and third gender individuals in the Capital that 56 additional restrooms are being built specifically for these individuals.
Nine Toilets Have Already Been Constructed
The Delhi government stated that they are making earnest efforts and constructing separate toilets for the transgenders on a fast track basis and nine of them have already been constructed. After reviewing the report, Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Subramonium Prasad’s bench gave the Delhi administration six weeks to provide a new status report on the new toilets built for transgender and third-gender people.The matter has nowbeen listed for further hearing by the court on November 14th. Jasmine Kaur Chhabra, a law student at the time, had filed a PIL with the court asking for instructions to build separate restrooms for the third gender on the grounds that the lack of such facilities leaves transgender people more vulnerable to sexual assault and harassment.
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The Privacy Of The Third Gender Is Violated
According to the petition, no separate restrooms are being built in Delhi for the transgender or third gender population, which is in violating the Supreme Court’s directives. The petition said that transgenders face harassment and agony every time they use washrooms that are designated for other genders. The transgender community faces this problem on a daily basis and therefore is a serious and concerning issue. Their own right to privacy is violated. The petition also pointed out how Mysore, Ludhiana and Bhopal have already taken actions and built separate toilets while Delhi still has not.
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