SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has directed the state government’s police recruitment board to accept applications from transgender persons seeking to join the force as constables and sub-inspectors, ruling that they cannot be turned away simply because the online application portal only lists male and female as gender options.
According to local reports, a division bench of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM Mohinuddin passed the interim order on Tuesday, September 8, while hearing a writ petition filed by Devath Tanu Sri and three others against the Telangana State Level Police Recruitment Board (TSLPRB). The petitioners argued that the binary gender format on the recruitment portal forced transgender applicants to make a false declaration about their identity to apply.
The bench was direct in its questioning. The Chief Justice asked the state government why it had not issued guidelines directing departments to move away from a binary classification of gender and adopt a more inclusive approach for transgender persons.
Petitioners cite backward classes panel recommendation
Senior counsel for the petitioners told the court that excluding transgender persons from the recruitment process altogether was arbitrary and unconstitutional. He pointed to recommendations from the Telangana Commission for Backward Classes, which had called for horizontal reservation for transgender persons across social categories.
The petitioners have challenged recruitment notifications No. 189 and No. 225, both dated July 20, along with a supplementary notification issued on August 15, 2026. They have also questioned Rules 22 and 22-A of the Telangana State and Subordinate Service Rules, 1996, which they say exclude transgender persons from consideration. Beyond the immediate relief on applications, they are seeking horizontal reservation for transgender candidates across SC, ST, BC, EWS and open categories, and a chance to compete at every stage of recruitment if they meet the eligibility criteria.
C Rajashekar Reddy, standing counsel for the recruitment board, told the court that the deadline for submitting applications has been extended to September 16. The bench directed the board to accept physical applications from transgender candidates and issue proper acknowledgement wherever the online portal’s binary format blocks them from applying. The matter will next come up on September 16, by when the state must file its counter-affidavit.
A recurring fight over recognition
Tuesday’s order adds to a string of court interventions across the country pushing recruitment boards to accommodate transgender candidates, a category that recruitment rules have historically overlooked. The Madras High Court set an early precedent in 2015 when it cleared the way for K Prithika Yashini to compete for a sub-inspector’s post in Tamil Nadu, directing the state to add a third gender category to its recruitment process. Courts in West Bengal and Karnataka have since passed similar orders on police recruitment for transgender applicants.
Telangana’s own record on the issue has been mixed. In 2022, the state government proposed recruiting transgender volunteers as traffic police in Hyderabad, a scheme framed as both a livelihood measure and a policing initiative.
The Telangana High Court has also previously struck down the colonial-era Telangana Eunuchs Act for criminalising transgender and intersex persons, and had directed the state welfare board for transgender persons to work with legal aid authorities to implement the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019; however, the state is yet to fully accommodate the third gender.
SOURCE : SIASAT
