Kerala HC directed CBSE to decide within a week to change transgender student's name and gender on certificate

The Kerala High Court has ordered the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to decide within one month on an application submitted by a transgender student to change their name and gender on their CBSE certificates for 10th and 12th standards. The Court has further instructed that if CBSE needs any clarification or additional documents from the student, it should make the request within two weeks.

The Court was hearing a petition from a transgender individual who was seeking direction for the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to change their name, gender, and photograph on their CBSE certificates of 10th and 12th standards. The individual was assigned female at birth but had recently changed their gender and name. The individual, who is currently a young undergraduate degree holder, stated that they are planning to pursue post-graduate studies and that they need to change their 10th and 12th certificates under CBSE to match their recently chosen name and include a new photograph in order to enroll in the PG program.

The petitioner argued that as per the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020, once a person changes their gender, the change must be reflected in all government documents. The petitioner stated that they had reached out to the CBSE to update their documents, but the CBSE told them that they must first change their birth certificate before they can change their school certificates. However, even when the birth certificate was amended, the CBSE did not change the details in the petitioner's 10th and 12th standard certificates. This led the petitioner to approach the court seeking directions for the CBSE to change their name, gender, and photograph in the relevant certificates.

The court directed CBSE to decide on the application within a month. The Court also directed CBSE to request any additional clarification or documents from the petitioner within two weeks. The decision of the court is in line with the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Rules, 2020, which state that once a person changes their gender, the change has to be reflected in all government documents.