The Madras High Court has urged the Tamil Nadu government to take a firm decision on providing reservations for transgender and intersex persons in public employment and educational institutions, in order to avoid repeated litigation on the issue.
Justice N Anand Venkatesh issued the directive while passing interim orders in a writ petition filed by N Sushma and U Semma Agarval. The matter has been listed for further hearing on September 15.
The judge recorded his appreciation for the state’s newly released Tamil Nadu State Policy for Transgender Persons 2025, which came into effect on July 31. He noted that while the policy reflects significant progress, it remains unclear whether the government intends to offer horizontal reservation to transgender and intersex persons—a long-standing demand from the community and one supported by previous court rulings.
Citing Clause 3.7 of the new policy, titled “Right to Representation in Employment and Educational Institution”, the court emphasized that clarity on the nature of reservation—whether merely aspirational or enforceable in the form of quotas—was essential. “This is an important suggestion that requires immediate consideration,” the judge remarked.
Justice Venkatesh also took note of the state government’s submission that a separate policy for the LGBQA+ community is still under process. He called on the government to expedite the formulation and implementation of that policy, stating, “Now that the government has come out with a policy for transgender and intersex persons, it is time that the government comes up with a policy for LGBQA+ persons also.”
