JUDGMENT :

G.S. PATEL, J.

1. The Petition is simple and it is clearly one supported by every recent decision of the Supreme Court regarding the rights of those who have traditionally been held to be marginalized. The decisions of the Supreme Court direct us towards greater inclusiveness and acceptance of individuality and individual traits. These are not to be compromised because of some bureaucratic requirements.

2. Prayer clauses (a) and (b) in the Petition read thus:

“(a) for a writ of Mandamus or a writ, order, or direction in the nature of Mandamus directing the Respondent No. 1 to change the Petitioner’s name and gender in their education records and re-issue the Petitioner’s education documents including the grade card, degree certificate, migration/transfer certificate, bona-fide certificate and any other required documents to the Petitioner in their chosen name and gender.

(b) for a writ of Mandamus or a writ, order, or direction in the nature of Mandamus directing the Respondent No. 1 to suitably modify the form available to alumni at Alumni-Application-From-for-Transcript Feb-2022.pdf (tiss.edu) to make if flexible to include requests by alumni for change of particulars such as name and gender in their education records and documents.”

3. The facts are not contentious. In 2013, the Petitioner, described as ‘X’ in this Petition received an MA in Development Studies from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, the 1st Respondent, in a certain name and describing her gender to be female. In 2015 the Petitioner adopted another name, self-identifying as transgender. She swore an affidavit to that effect in November 2018. The Petitioner filed Writ Petition (L) No. 1200 of 2019 for directions for publishing the Petitioner’s change of name in the gazette. This Court made an order on 16th April 2019 following which the Petitioner’s change of name was gazetted. Copies of the order and the gazette are annexed. In 2022, the Petitioner decided to change the Petitioner’s name again, now for numerological reasons. An affidavit was prepared in August 2022 to that effect. This was gazetted in August 2022 and other documents such as the PAN and Aadhar Cards were updated.

4. The Petitioner had as long ago as 2019 desired to study law but various reasons, including the delay in gazetting and then COVID pandemic and lockdown, delayed that plan. The Petitioner’s last grade card, degree certificate and other documents were issued by the 1st Respondent in the previous name with the gender female. The Petitioner submits that the Petitioner is entitled to a re-issuance of these documents in the current name and with the current gender. The Petitioner made a representation dated 6th January 2023 to the 1st Respondent. A reminder followed on 9th February 2023. There was no response.

5. The Petition points out that there is in fact no process on the 1st Respondent’s website to deal with a situation such as this, i.e., for a change of name and gender and the re-issuance of documents. This is particularly true for cases of trans-genders. Despite the decisions of the Supreme Court in National Legal Services Authority vs. Union of India and Others, (2014) 5 SCC 438 the 1st Respondent and other institutes have not made the required arrangements.

6. We do not believe that there is any possible answer to this Petition at all. This is not a case of there being any conceivable adversary. This is a case of a denial of a human being’s self-identity and self-identification. That cannot be done and cannot be permitted. Nor can an institute be permitted to force upon the Petitioner a name, identity or a gender that the Petitioner has chosen to reject in preference to some other.

7. The even stranger requirement that we are told across the Bar and which is on affidavit is that certain previous qualifications and educational documents are required. But this is bound to send everything into a tailspin because those documents, for example, a school leaving certificate or a