THERE have been some discussion in the national media about the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) verdict on the Transgender Rights Act, but, unfortunately, some writers have brought their own biases into their self-proclaimed analyses.

Insisting on one’s right to self-perceived identity has deeper implications for our social fabric than many seem to believe. By taking that route, we are bound to make one’s biological sex irrelevant, allowing the gender, which is a social construct, to determine whether a person is a man or woman. It is all about going for the non-binary option of gender X.

After thorough deliberations spanning more than two years and based on the arguments presented by petitioners and respondents, the court gave its judgment in which it has inter alia accepted that intersex, khawaja sira and eunuchs are recognised by the Islamic law. However, the court objected to their inclusion under one umbrella term of transgender person in section 2(n) of the Act and called it a source of conflation and confusion.

Hence, ‘intersex’ and ‘transgender’ have different meanings, because the gender identity of the former is associated with the sex assigned to them at the time of birth, while ‘transgender’ is a term that describes people whose internal sense of being male or female does not match with the sex assigned at the time of birth. Likewise, the court stated that the term khawaja sira was used for eunuch or a castrated person.

The court also rejected the concept of self-perceived identity. This across-the-board facility under the Act was granted without demanding any proof. This was a serious lacuna which the FSC judgment tackled effectively.

Safdar Hayat
Islamabad

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2023