HC orders inclusion of transgender in panchayat poll-related

The Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court today directed Uttar Pradesh government and state Election Commission to provide for inclusion of third gender/ transgender candidates in the documents of panchayat elections, including nomination paper.

A division bench of chief justice D Y Chandrachud and justice Shree Narain Shukla gave the order on a PIL seeking a direction for providing the column for third/transgender candidates in related documents/forms of ongoing panchayat election process in UP.

According to the petitioner's counsel S K Mishra, no column for third or transgender candidates was available in election-related forms, including nomination paper, because of which candidates of such categories were facing problem.