Months after she was hailed as Kerala’s “first transgender woman lawyer”, advocate Padma Lakshmi has alleged that she is facing systemic pushbacks and discrimination within the legal fraternity. She filed a complaint to Law Minister P Rajeev on Wednesday, November 8, and the Judicial Registrar of Kerala High Court on Thursday in this regard, stating that she has been facing frequent verbal abuses and snubs from senior advocates including a government pleader, owing to her identity as a trans woman.
In her complaint, Padma said she was being isolated and mentally harassed because of her gender, adding that a senior advocate even used a transphobic slur against her inside the court premises. She said she was also subjected to similar psychological abuse by another senior advocate, who allegedly made a defamatory social media post against Padma because she was irked by Padma’s decision to start her own office. This senior lawyer’s account has now been deactivated. “I started an office as a reply to a lawyer who told me that sex work is the right job for transgender persons,” Padma said, adding that she entered the profession to fight for those in need.
“I am submitting this complaint out of fear that the two government pleaders mentioned are highly influential and goodwill people… Everyone will come to save them and I am afraid that I will be alone,” Padma wrote in her complaint. Speaking to TNM, Padma said that she was hoping an inquiry would be conducted and suitable action taken on her complaint. “I was silent for a very long time. I filed this complaint now so that no one who enters this field after me faces such problems,” she said.
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In March this year, when Padma received her Bar enrolment certificate, several ministers, senior officials, and activist groups had lauded her for her coveted achievement. State Minister for Industries and Law P Rajeev took to social media to congratulate the young lawyer. “Congratulations to Padmalakshmi who overcame all the hurdles of life and enrolled as the first transgender [person] advocate in Kerala. Becoming the first person [to do something] is always the hardest achievement in history. There are no predecessors on the way to the goal. Obstacles will be inevitable. There will be people to mute and discourage. Padmalakshmi has written her name in the legal history by overcoming all these,” he had said.