The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation has introduced an option for the transgender community to choose the third gender while reserving or cancelling tickets, PTI reported.
The move follows a petition filed by Delhi-based lawyer Jamshed Ansari, alleging that the railways and IRCTC had violated constitutional provisions by not providing the option to choose “transgender” or “third gender” in their forms. Ansari had also demanded special coaches and reserved seats in all trains for members of the community. In February, the Delhi High Court had directed him to approach the Ministry of Railways, while disposing of his petition.
The ministry’s decision to include the third gender option is in accordance with the Supreme Court’s April 2014 order, in which it had said eunuchs, apart from the binary gender, should be treated as the third gender to protect their rights. “This information will be captured by the system, and tickets for the transgender community will be issued on full fare,” a circular released by the Railway Ministry said.
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