Kolkata police can now recruit transpersons – Times of India

KOLKATA: The city police will allow transpersons to appear for its officers’ examination to be held this year. The Bengal government on Friday informed Calcutta high court that the state had on September 14 decided to introduce a third column in its application for the 2021 examinations alongside male and female.
The high court was hearing a petition, urging the court’s intervention to allow transpersons to apply for the Kolkata Police officers’ examinations, since the online application portal only had two options — male and female. Justice Arindam Mukherjee had urged state counsel Sutapa Sanyal to inform it on the state’s stand.
“After the HC’s intervention, I had discussed this with the appropriate authorities. The Bengal government has allowed transpersons to appear for the Kolkata Police officers’ examinations in 2021. I would like to thank the Calcutta High Court and the Bengal government for taking this decision. I think this will have a nationwide impact,” said Sanyal.
After Chhattisgarh Police allowed this in March, Odisha and Rajasthan have also had recruitment for transpersons in police forces.
Justice Mukherjee, in his order, said, “The intervention on behalf of the advocate representing the state and the prompt decision taken in the matter by the state is appreciated.”
The examinations will be for Sub-Inspector/Sub-Inspectress (Unarmed Branch) and Sergeant in Kolkata Police for the year 2021. Unarmed Branch refers to all Kolkata cops who can investigate cases, unlike their counterparts in Kolkata Armed Police, who are deployed for law-and-order duties.
The Apex court’s NALSA judgment has recognized individuals who didn’t fall in the gender binary of male and female as third gender. The court not only recognized their fundamental rights, but urged the Centre and state to include them in the other socially backward classes list.