PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has declared a transgender woman entitled to receiving pension of her deceased father and directed the provincial government to release the same to her.

Justice Wiqar Ahmad and Justice Fazal Subhan of Abbottabad Circuit Bench has accepted a petition filed by Ms Rukhsar seeking directives of the court for the government to issue to her the pension and other related benefits of her deceased father, who was a government servant.

After discussing different aspects of the case, the bench ruled that it was of firm view that the petitioner was a woman (transgender) and daughter of late Gohar Rehman.

The bench ruled that the petitioner was unmarried and as per law she was entitled to the family pension of her father, till her lifetime, but subject to any change in her gender expression, and therefore the respondents, including the government, were directed to immediately release pension and related benefits to her.

Orders provincial govt to release pension to her

Gohar Rehman was serving in the health department and after retirement from service on Jan 1, 1989, he had been receiving his pension till his death on July 21, 2020.

The wife of the deceased had already died whereas other sisters of the petitioner are married.

A panel of lawyers, including Nazish Parvez, Sehrish Parvez and Farah Parvez, appeared for the petitioner and stated that after the death of their client’s father, the petitioner being a transgender by birth and unmarried daughter of her parents applied for pension of her late father to the respondents, including the provincial government, but they refused to pay the same.

They contended that under the relevant law the petitioner being a woman transgender was entitled to the pension of her late father.

They contended that through a notification the provincial government had promulgated the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Civil Servants Pension Rules, 2021, under which an unmarried daughter was entitled to pension of her late father for lifetime or till her marriage.

The bench observed that the legislature while identifying the problems being faced by transgender persons in respect of their gender expression and identity had enacted The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018, for protection, relief and rehabilitation of their rights and welfare.

In its judgment authored by Justice Fazal Subhan, the bench has quoted section 4 of the said Act, which emphasised restrictions and prohibitions against discrimination towards transgender persons.

The bench observed that the petitioner had placed her CNIC on file, which showed her gender as woman (transgender) and on the basis of being unmarried daughter of late Gohar Rehman, she claimed the pension.

The bench ruled that though the gender of the petitioner had not been medically determined the concerned authorities after due process and legal formalities had issued CNIC to the petitioner, which gave legal support to her claim of being a woman (transgender).

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2022