Transgender Rights in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita: Identifying Gaps and Proposing Reforms

Abstract

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) was enacted to modernize India's criminal justice system and replace the colonial-era Indian Penal Code. Nevertheless, its importance still is not sufficient to provide the specific rights and protections of transgender individuals in the context of hate crime and gender-based violence. In many cases, transgender persons experience discrimination, violence, and systemic marginalization because of prejudice and bias directed toward their gender identity. Lack of express hate crime clauses on the BNS presents a big gap in the law that weakens the protection, dignity, and fundamental rights of the transgender. The paper has critically examined legal frameworks by extensive survey of literature, and safeguards provided by Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 on hate crime. It is observed that BNS has several deficiencies in terms of transgender protections and underline the overwhelming importance of introducing strong hate crime law. Recommended reforms such as the introduction of explicit clauses on hate crime, increase in the punishment of gender-related crimes, and expanded legal acknowledgments of rights and dignity of transgenders. Closing these gaps is not only a legal issue, it is one of dignity, safety and humanity of transgender people.