Police academy sensitises staff on transgender rights

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Police Academy is all set to sensitise its staff about rights of the transgender community through a three-day training programme on provision of the transgender person’s (Protection of Rights) Act, so that the rights of the community are safeguarded.

The move is sure to provide relief to members of the community as the training programme will felicitate police officers to understand better issues transgender people face. Speaking to News Trail, Akkai Padmashali, a transgender activist, welcomed the move and said it was a result of their delegation meeting with Home Minister Parameshwara in this regard.

“Good move by the KPA in organising education/ awareness training to its senior police officers about the transgender and sexuality minority’s struggles and challenges”, she said.

While the move stresses the protection of rights, it is also to be noted that this programme will educate junior-level officers about how to deal with such cases.

“Many junior-level officers are insensitive in handling such cases and I hope this programme educates them”, said Padmashali.

Further, the programme will help curb the increased attack and discrimination against community members after the abrogation of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Citing the Supreme Court's landmark Nalsa judgment in 2014, in which it legally recognised non-binary gender identities and upheld the fundamental rights of transgender persons in India, and Karnataka’s state policy of 2017, which acknowledges the judgment and encourages all departments of the government to include the development of a transgender person in their programs and schemes, to empower, enable and provide remedial and sustainability measures, Padmashali hopes it will end the discrimination.