As part of its recent efforts to promote inclusivity and sensitivity towards LGBTQIA+ persons, the Supreme Court of India has installed nine gender-neutral restrooms at various locations within the main building and the additional building complex in New Delhi. It has also taken a step to make the online Advocates Appearance Portal more gender inclusive, by allowing an additional column for lawyers to mention their preferred pronouns while appearing for hearings or filing documents. The move is expected to ensure that transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming individuals have the opportunity to express themselves authentically without prejudice or bias.
The new initiatives, as approved by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, reportedly come in the wake of the apex court’s objective of sensitisation towards and inclusion of the LGBTQIA+ community, besides providing them a dignified and safe work environment. Chandrachud was quoted by LiveLaw as saying, “We have installed gender neutral toilets within the Supreme Court — that is one of the demands I had received that there should be gender neutral toilets as well, toilets for transgender [persons], so we now have that in place in the Supreme Court.” The universal restrooms are accessible to all persons, irrespective of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
The apex court has also announced the appointment of Menaka Guruswamy, a senior advocate and prominent gay rights litigator, as a member of its 11-member Gender Sensitization and Internal Complaints Committee (GSICC). The GSICC was constituted to address complaints of sexual harassment within the Supreme Court. Menaka has played an instrumental role in the decriminalisation of consensual homosexuality in India in 2018, when the Supreme Court partially struck down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), deeming it unconstitutional. Her recent decision to represent the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), in a petition against the Hindutva organisation’s proposed route marches in Tamil Nadu, however had raised eyebrows.
The Supreme Court has stated that a proposal to broaden the scope of the GSICC to 'Gender and Sexuality Sensitization and Internal Complaints Committee' is also under active consideration. The demand for this proposal came from Rohin Bhatt, a 24-year-old non-binary queer rights activist and lawyer, who had raised the need to address the unique challenges faced by the LGBTQIA+ community in accessing justice and protection against discrimination. If approved, the proposed change will allow the GSICC to address complaints related to discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, in addition to its current mandate of addressing complaints of sexual harassment.