A Division Bench of the Madras High Court comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy has in the case of Grace Banu v. State of Tamil Nadu instructed the Petitioner to provide a copy of the petition to the Advocate General for further hearing and asked the response of the Government pertaining to the provision of cash assistance to the community of Petitioner (transgender community).
Factual Background
The Petitioner belongs to the transgender community. He represented the whole Transgender community and brought to the notice of the Court the fact that most of the members of this community in the State of Tamil Nadu were without a Ration card, and as a result of which they were facing difficulty in getting ration from Government shops.
Therefore, the petitioner filed PIL under Article 226 of the Constitution of India for issuance of a Writ of Mandamus directing the Respondents.
Court Reasoning & Judgment
The court was informed that a letter dated June 4, 2021, issued by the State to the learned Advocate General indicated the measures taken by the State pursuant to previous orders passed on this petition.
The Advocate General submitted in the Court that
"1- The Government has sanctioned the first spell of Covid cash relief to all rice family cardholders including 'third genders' who possess family cards.
2- The Government has also decided to distribute cash relief of Rs.2,000/- per beneficiary to 'third genders' who do not have ration cards but are registered with the Third Gender Welfare Board."
On the issue of the vaccination of the Transgenders on a priority basis, the Court considered the issue of vulnerability of Transgender and advised the Government that it is hoped that the State will consider vaccinating transgenders on a priority basis, particularly since the number of transgenders may not be many.
The Bench had listed the matter on 14.06.2021 for the next hearing.
Case Details
Case:- W.P.No.12035 of 2021
Petitioner:- Grace Banu
Respondent:- State of Tamil Nadu & Ors.
Counsel for Petitioner:- Ms.Jayna Kothari
Counsel for Respondent:- Mr.R.Shunmugasundaram
Judge: Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy
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