Punjab And Haryana High Court: Directed Chandigarh Admin To Allow Candidate To Apply Under Transgender Category In Online Form For Police Constable Post

The Punjab and Haryana High Court in the case Saurav Alias Kittu Tank v. Home Secretary, UT Chandigarh & Ors observed and has issued the notice to the Chandigarh Administration wherein a plea was moved by the transgender person’s seeking directions to allow the petitioner to apply for the post of Constable i.e., the Executive in the Union Territory under the transgender category.
The petitioner in the plea stated that there being no option to apply under the transgender category.
The bench headed by Justice Vikram Aggarwal in the case observed that the petitioner submits an online application form mentioning the category as a transgender person and the same shall be accepted and thereafter considered by the appropriate authority in accordance with its own rules and regulations. Thus, the court issued the notice.
The plea was moved by one Saurav alias Kittu Tank. Saurav alias Kittu being the India’s first transgender person to climb 6,000-meter-high Virgin Peak in Spiti Valley, Himachal Pradesh.
The petitioner in the plea stated that the Chandigarh Administration published an advertisement for the recruitment of post of Constable i.e., the Executive on 700 temporary posts in the month of May. Therefore, the said court was informed that when the petitioner made an attempt in order to fill an online application form, there being no such option with regard to the transgender category. The petitioner submitted a representation in the month of June but it yielded no result.
It has also been prayed by Saurav in the plea for the permission in order to apply for the post and seeks the recognition of the transgender community as the ‘Third Gender’ in accordance with the direction given by the Supreme Court in the case of NALSA v. UOI.
The said petition also seek for the issuance of directions to the Chandigarh Administration to frame appropriate guidelines for members of the Transgender Community with regards to the physical fitness as currently there are only standards mentioned for both the male and female candidates.
Accordingly, the court issued the notice and has posted the matter for further consideration on July 31, 2023.
The counsel, Advocate Raina Godara, Advocate bhimanyu Balyan, Advocate Pooja Pande and Advocate Neil Roberts appeared for the petitioner.