Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
According to the notification issued by the Department of Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Law and Justice, the advisory body will be chaired by Justice (Retd) Asha Menon, former Delhi High Court judge. The panel includes senior government officials as ex-officio members as well as transgender rights activists, legal scholars, public health experts and policy researchers.
Composition of Advisory Committee
The members named in the government order include Akkai Padmashali, Grace Banu, Vyjayanti Vasant Mogli, Saurav Mandal of Jindal Global Law School, Nithya Rajasekhar of the Center for Law and Policy Research and Air Commodore (retd) Sanjay Sharma, CEO of the Association for Transgender Health in India. Senior advocate Jayna Kothari has been appointed amicus curiae, while joint secretary of the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment will act as convener.
Secretaries of key ministries – including social justice and empowerment, women and child development, health and family welfare and education – will serve as ex-officio members with advisory jurisdiction.
The Committee is tasked with making an in-depth study of the conditions faced by transgender persons and recommending equal opportunity policy and other institutional measures aimed at preventing discrimination, particularly in employment, education and access to public services.
What order did the Supreme Court give on 17 October?
On October 17, 2025, the Supreme Court flagged the continued exclusion of transgender persons from workplaces and educational institutions, despite statutory protection under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019.
The court said that the absence of an enforceable equal opportunities framework had resulted in systemic discrimination, particularly in private sector employment.
It directed the Centre:
- Set up an expert advisory committee;
- Prepare a model equal opportunities policy applicable to public and private establishments; And
- Ensure timely implementation of recommendations once presented.
The bench emphasized that the rights to dignity, equality and livelihood for transgender persons come directly from Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, and policy inertia cannot be allowed to undermine these guarantees.
Background of Jane Kaushik case
The case arose out of a writ petition filed by Jane Kaushik, a transgender woman and teacher, who challenged her alleged termination and exclusion from employment by private educational institutions on the basis of gender identity.
Kaushik argued that despite the 2019 Act, without any practical enforcement of equal opportunity norms, grievance redressal mechanism or workplace safety measures, transgender persons continue to face informal discrimination.
Under the Supreme Court’s October 17 order, the Center is required to notify the equal opportunities policy within three months of the advisory committee submitting its recommendations, news websites reported.