Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Punishing process: On gender identity recognition

Punishing process: On gender identity recognition

Gender identity (लैंगिक पहचान) recognition must not be trapped (फँसाना, जकड़ लेना) in bureaucratic hurdles (बाधा, रुकावट)

The Manipur High Court’s order to the State to issue fresh academic certificates to Beoncy Laishram is at once a matter of individual justice and a larger commentary (टिप्पणी, विश्लेषण) on the state of transgender rights. What should have been a simple administrative correction became a legal battle, not because the law lacks (कमी होना, अभाव होना) provisions (प्रावधान, शर्त) but because its implementation (कार्यान्वयन, लागू करना) remains frustrated (निराश करना, हताश करना) by inertia and bureaucratic (नौकरशाही संबंधी) rigidity (कठोरता). In NALSA vs Union of India, the Supreme Court recognised the right to self-identify gender and ordered the state to treat transpersons as socially and educationally backward classes entitled (हकदार बनाना, अधिकार देना) to welfare (कल्याण, भलाई) measures (कदम, उपाय). The principle was codified in the Transgender (it is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity is different from the gender assigned to us at birth) Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019, which also obligated (oblige, force, impel, compel, commit, require; be bound, be duty-bound by law to do something) authorities to recognise (support, validate, ratify, uphold, endorse, acknowledge, accept, officially approve) a person’s self-identified gender and issue official documents. Together with Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, transpersons are thus (therefore, accordingly, hence) entitled to having their affirmed (declared, stated, asserted, proclaimed) identity seamlessly (smoothly, consistently, continuously, effortlessly) recognised in all institutional records. Yet, their lived reality (the (probably bad) life experiences a person has gone through in his/her life (or) Lived reality, in the context of sustainability, refers to the actual, experienced conditions and circumstances of individuals and communities) is very different. Despite the law being clear (understandable, clear-cut) on self-identification, bureaucratic setups (system, structure, circumstances) often do not act unless compelled by higher authorities (bureaucracy, officials, officialdom, the people in charge, the government, the administration, the establishment, the regime/system, corridors of power). In Dr. Laishram’s case, her university refused to update her educational records citing procedural (systemic, systematic, methodical, operational, organizational) hurdles — symptomatic (indicative, warning, signalling, suggestive, symbolic) of a systemic malaise (trouble, unease, depression/unhappiness). Administrators routinely defer to (to agree to accept what somebody has decided; to allow (someone else) to decide or choose something) the most restrictive (restricting, limiting, tightening, confining, blocking, hindering, impeding) reading (a particular interpretation/understanding of a text) of procedure rather than the spirit of the law. In the present matter, the university and education boards insisted that corrections must begin with the earliest certificate, qualifying recognition (मान्यता, स्वीकृति) on a cascading ((of a large number of something) overflowing (in a series/sequence)) set of bureaucratic approvals.

Where the law envisages (conceive, imagine, envision, think, perceive, apprehend) gender as a matter of self-determination for transgender individuals, many officials remain wedded to the binary (something having two parts (male and female)) markers assigned at birth, and the mismatch (discrepancy, contradiction, inconsistency) translates into a stunted (small, little, tiny) application of a simple idea. The insistence (demand, requirement, urging) on sequential corrections or elaborate (complicated, detailed, complex, intricate, confusing) justifications (excuse, reason, explanation, argument, rationale, pretext, rationalization, vindication) is essentially a refusal to accept that gender identity is not derived from paperwork. Dr. Laishram’s struggle also shows how institutional reluctance (unwillingness, disinclination, hesitation, timidity, resistance) to operationalise (put into operation; put into use; employ, apply) this principle forces transpersons into prolonged (lengthy, extended, protracted, unending, unrelenting) legal contests over what should be routine matters. Such episodes (incident, occurrence, happening, experience, occasion, time, event) reveal a troubling truth: transpersons, navigating (travel, proceed (especially carefully or with difficulty)) stigma (shame, disgrace, dishonour, discredit; Stigma occurs when society labels someone as disgraced or less desirable. Stigma involves three elements; a lack of knowledge (ignorance), negative attitudes (prejudice) and people behaving in ways that disadvantage the stigmatised person (discrimination)) and discrimination (prejudice, intolerance, inequity, unfairness (against an individual or group of individuals by society and its institutions (basically in the procedures, policies, or objectives) as a whole), are forced to expend (use up, deplete, spend, waste) disproportionate time and resources to access rights that are legally theirs. The High Court judgment is undoubtedly positive: it also sets a precedent (a past action/event/decision that is seen as an example; previous example, previous instance, prior instance, previous case, example) that may help other transpersons and signals to administrators that procedural rigidity cannot override (cancel, revoke, repudiate, overrule, overturn, invalidate, nullify, ignore; reject, disavow, disown, discard, rebuff; oppose, resist, object, deny) constitutional and statutory (legitimate, legal, rightful, lawful) guarantees. Bridging the gap between legal rights and their application will require both institutional reform and cultural change within the bureaucracy that draw from an understanding of gender as lived reality.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.punishing (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - दंडात्मक, बहुत कठिन
English Meaning - demanding, taxing, difficult, hard, tough, arduous, back-breaking, burdensome.

2.gender identity (noun)

Hindi Meaning - लैंगिक पहचान
English Meaning - the personal sense of one’s own gender (male/female). Gender identity can correlate with a person’s assigned gender at birth or can differ from it.

3.recognition (noun)

Hindi Meaning - मान्यता, स्वीकृति
English Meaning - acknowledgement, acceptance, official approval, certification.

4.trap (verb)

Hindi Meaning - फँसाना, जकड़ लेना
English Meaning - get stuck, get caught.

5.bureaucratic (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - नौकरशाही संबंधी
English Meaning - relating to a bureaucracy; administrative, official, procedural, red-tape, governmental.

6.hurdle (noun)

Hindi Meaning - बाधा, रुकावट
English Meaning - obstacle, difficulty, problem, barrier, impediment, obstruction, hindrance.

7.commentary (noun)

Hindi Meaning - टिप्पणी, विश्लेषण
English Meaning - comments, opinions, remarks, reports, analysis.

8.lack (verb)

Hindi Meaning - कमी होना, अभाव होना
English Meaning - be without, be deficient in, be in need of, require.

9.provision (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रावधान, शर्त
English Meaning - clause, (legal) term, stipulation, requirement, condition.

10.implementation (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कार्यान्वयन, लागू करना
English Meaning - enforcement, execution, imposition.

11.frustrate (verb)

Hindi Meaning - निराश करना, हताश करना
English Meaning - upset, annoy, irritate, vex, irk.

12.rigidity (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कठोरता
English Meaning - severity, rigidness, inflexibility, strictness, sternness, hardness, stringency, harshness, stubbornness.

13.entitle (verb)

Hindi Meaning - हकदार बनाना, अधिकार देना
English Meaning - empower, accredit, authorize, allow/permit.

14.welfare (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कल्याण, भलाई
English Meaning  - a government program that provides (financial) assistance to individuals and families in need; social security, government/state benefit, public assistance.

15.measure (noun)

Hindi Meaning - कदम, उपाय
English Meaning - action, step, move, procedure.

16.recognise (verb)

English Meaning - support, validate, ratify, uphold, endorse, acknowledge, accept, officially approve.

17.legal gender recognition (noun)

English Meaning - it refers to the process by which individuals can change their legally recognized sex or gender to match their self-identified gender on forms of official documentation such as identification cards, passports, and birth certificates.

18.transgender (noun)

English Meaning - it is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity is different from the gender assigned to us at birth.

19.inertia (noun)

English Meaning - inactivity, inaction, inactiveness, dormancy, passivity, apathy, stagnation, dullness, sluggishness, lethargy, idleness, laziness.

20.National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) (noun)

English Meaning - The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 to provide free Legal Services to the weaker sections of the society and to organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes. The Chief Justice of India is the Patron-in-Chief.

21.State Legal Services Authority (noun)

English Meaning - In every State a State Legal Services Authority is constituted to give effect to the policies and directions of the Central Authority (NALSA) and to give legal services to the people and conduct Lok Adalats in the State. State Legal Services Authority is headed by the Chief Justice of the State High Court who is its Patron-in-Chief.

22.NALSA vs Union of India Case (2014) (noun)

English Meaning - a landmark judgment where the Supreme Court of India legally recognized transgender individuals as the “third gender” and affirmed their fundamental rights under the Indian Constitution.

23.codify (verb)

English Meaning - list, set out, classify, categorize.

24.Transgender persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 (noun)

English Meaning - An Act to provide for protection of rights of transgender persons and their welfare and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto.

25.obligate (verb)

English Meaning - oblige, force, impel, compel, commit, require; be bound, be duty-bound by law to do something.

26.authorities (noun)

English Meaning - bureaucracy, officials, officialdom, the people in charge, the government, the administration, the establishment, the regime/system, corridors of power.

27.Part III Rights/Fundamental Rights (noun)

English Meaning - The Fundamental Rights, embodied in Part III of the Constitution, guarantee civil rights to all Indians and prevent the State from encroaching an individual’s liberty while simultaneously placing upon it an obligation to protect the citizens’ rights from encroachment by society. Seven fundamental rights were originally provided by the Constitution - the right to equality, right to freedom, right against exploitation, right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, right to property and right to constitutional remedies. However, the right to property was removed from Part III of the Constitution by the 44th Amendment in 1978.

28.right to equality (noun)

English Meaning - Article 14 to 18 of the constitution guarantee the right to equality to every citizen of Indian. Article 14 embodies the general principles of equality before law and prohibits unreasonable discrimination between persons. Article 14 embodies the idea of equality expressed in the preamble. the succeeding Article 15, 16, 17 and 18 lay down specific application of the general rules laid down in Article 14.

29.Article 14 of the constitution of India (noun)

English Meaning - Equality before law. The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.

30.Article 21 of the constitution of India (noun)

English Meaning - Protection of life and personal liberty. No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law.

31.thus (adverb)

English Meaning - therefore, accordingly, hence.

32.affirmed (adjective)

English Meaning - declared, stated, asserted, proclaimed.

33.seamlessly (adverb)

English Meaning - smoothly, consistently, continuously, effortlessly.

34.lived reality (noun)

English Meaning - the (probably bad) life experiences a person has gone through in his/her life (or) Lived reality, in the context of sustainability, refers to the actual, experienced conditions and circumstances of individuals and communities.

35.clear (adjective)

English Meaning - understandable, clear-cut.

36.setup (noun)

English Meaning - system, structure, circumstances.

37.cite (verb)

English Meaning - invoke, refer to, bring forth, adduce, use, put into effect, turn to, resort to.

38.procedural (adjective)

English Meaning - systemic, systematic, methodical, operational, organizational.

39.symptomatic (adjective)

English Meaning - indicative, warning, signalling, suggestive, symbolic.

40.malaise (noun)

English Meaning - trouble, unease, depression/unhappiness.

41.defer to (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to agree to accept what somebody has decided; to allow (someone else) to decide or choose something.

42.restrictive (adjective)

English Meaning - restricting, limiting, tightening, confining, blocking, hindering, impeding.

43.reading (noun)

English Meaning - a particular interpretation/understanding of a text.

44.letter and spirit (noun phrase)

English Meaning - (to obey) both literal interpretation/wording and the intent/purpose of the law.

45.cascading (adjective)

English Meaning - (of a large number of something) overflowing (in a series/sequence).

46.envisage (verb)

English Meaning - conceive, imagine, envision, think, perceive, apprehend.

47.wed to (verb)

English Meaning - be attached to, be fixated on, obsessive about, single-minded about.

48.binary (noun)

English Meaning - something having two parts (male and female).

49.non-binary (noun)

English Meaning - In really simple terms, a non-binary person is someone who does not identify as exclusively a man or a woman. Someone who is non-binary might feel like a mix of genders, or like they have no gender at all.

50.mismatch (noun)

English Meaning - discrepancy, contradiction, inconsistency.

51.translate into (verb)

English Meaning - change, transform, transfigure, convert, alter.

52.stunted (adjective)

English Meaning - small, little, tiny.

53.application (noun)

English Meaning - use, implementation, applying.

54.insistence (noun)

English Meaning - demand, requirement, urging.

55.elaborate (adjective)

English Meaning - complicated, detailed, complex, intricate, confusing.

56.justification (noun)

English Meaning - excuse, reason, explanation, argument, rationale, pretext, rationalization, vindication.

57.reluctance (noun)

English Meaning - unwillingness, disinclination, hesitation, timidity, resistance.

58.operationalise (verb)

English Meaning - put into operation; put into use; employ, apply.

59.prolonged (adjective)

English Meaning - lengthy, extended, protracted, unending, unrelenting.

60.episode (noun)

English Meaning - incident, occurrence, happening, experience, occasion, time, event.

61.navigate (verb)

English Meaning - travel, proceed (especially carefully or with difficulty).

62.stigmatisation (noun)

English Meaning - a negative attitude or idea about a mental, physical, or social feature of a person or group of people that implies social disapproval. accusation, cursing, denouncement, discredit, dishonor, disparagement.

63.stigma (noun)

English Meaning - shame, disgrace, dishonour, discredit; Stigma occurs when society labels someone as disgraced or less desirable. Stigma involves three elements; a lack of knowledge (ignorance), negative attitudes (prejudice) and people behaving in ways that disadvantage the stigmatised person (discrimination).

64.discrimination (noun)

English Meaning - prejudice, intolerance, inequity, unfairness (against an individual or group of individuals by society and its institutions (basically in the procedures, policies, or objectives) as a whole.

65.expend (verb)

English Meaning - use up, deplete, spend, waste.

66.disproportionate (adjective)

English Meaning - excessive, too much, unjustified, needless, unreasonable, undue, inappropriate, unneeded, extreme, immoderate.

67.precedent (noun)

English Meaning - a past action/event/decision that is seen as an example; previous example, previous instance, prior instance, previous case, example.

68.override (verb)

English Meaning - cancel, revoke, repudiate, overrule, overturn, invalidate, nullify, ignore; reject, disavow, disown, discard, rebuff; oppose, resist, object, deny.

69.constitutional (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to the Constitution; legal, legitimate, lawful.

70.statutory (adjective)

English Meaning - legitimate, legal, rightful, lawful.

71.bridge the gulf/gap (phrase)

English Meaning - try to find a way to reduce the gap and bring the two separate viewpoints together.