A woman from Kerala takes her case to High Court to force her trans daughter to undergo a medical and psychological assessment because she does not believe she is a trans. Arundhati, 25-year-old, Arts student from a university in Kerala has identified herself as a female since she was 11 years old, but her mother has till date not accepted her gender identity. Her mother filed a Habeas Corpus petition in Kerala High Court to get custody of Arundhati.

To try and stop their daughter presenting as a female, Arundhati’s parents forced her into a mental hospital. “Without my consent, I was taken to the mental hospital and was admitted for three and a half months. They cut off my hair and nails and did so many things to me like giving me a lot of injections. My father and mother wanted to take me back to the mental hospital because they thought I have a ‘sickness’,” Arundhati told Dool News. She also said, “I want to allow myself to live in harmony with my will. From my childhood, I have always felt neglected, ridiculed and lonely.”

Arundhati’s mother believes that a ‘transgender gang’ have brainwashed her daughter and that’s why she forced her into court to order the medical assessment. Her mom argued that Arundhati had a mental aberration of mood disorder and that she changed her name to Arundhati in conspiracy with the interested transgender gang. She claims that Arundhati was not trans ‘physically or psychologically’. Throughout the court proceeding she misgendered Arundhati referring to her as ‘he’ and ‘my son’. Justices V Chitambaresh and KP Jyothindranath ruled on June 4 that Arundhati will undergo the psychological and medical examination of the transgender person at a mental hospital in the state.

In 2014, the Supreme Court of India ruled to recognise trans people as a third gender. The ruling also ordered state governments to improve the lives of trans people by granting equal rights and anti-discrimination laws. Kerala was one of the first states to enforce the Supreme Court’s ruling. It also became the first state to host the first trans beauty pageant and trans sports competition. The state government has also set up job placements and social housing for the trans community.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 05, 2018 01:20 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).