Karnataka High Court: In a strong stand for dignity and rights, the Karnataka High Court on Wednesday slammed the brakes on state officials running a controversial transgender survey in Bengaluru, explicitly banning any “strip and search” checks to verify participants’ identities. The ruling from a division bench led by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C M Poonacha also ordered that every scrap of data collected since the survey kicked off on September 15 stay under strict wraps—no sharing with outsiders allowed.
The case stemmed from a petition by the Anita Humanitarian Foundation, which fired off a challenge to scrap government orders greenlighting the so-called Gender Minority Survey. The group blasted the process as a clear breach of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, plus constitutional safeguards under Articles 14 (equality) and 21 (life and personal liberty).
Lawyers for the foundation painted a grim picture: transgender folks were allegedly getting forced into humiliating strip searches at hospitals by examiners who didn’t match their gender identity, all in the name of “confirmation.” They pointed out the absurdity—many already carry valid ID cards proving their status, so why the degrading hassle?
Taking it further, the petitioners pushed for a court directive to make sure any upcoming policies on transgender welfare loop in voices from the transgender and broader LGBTQIA+ circles, echoing the landmark Supreme Court NALSA judgment and Section 4 of the 2019 Act. This decision highlights the judiciary’s pushback against overreach, ensuring surveys meant to help don’t end up harming the very communities they’re targeting.
