Why Jammu’s transgender community hit the streets in protest

Several groups of the community came together at Bikram Chowk on January 21, 2021 to take out a nude protest. Four transgender persons were allegedly abudcted and forcefuly castrated by rival groups the day before. The community was protesting the police inaction against the case. Unclothed protestors blocked the Jammu-Pathankot highway and were later charged by the police and thrown in to a van. Rubina, a leader of a transgender group, told Down to Earth that police did not take any action on their complaints. “There is nobody to stand for our rights. The harassment is consistent but for the first time, we protested. Our protest was diluted and there is little hope for justice,” she said. This triggered a wave of protests in the city. The already-marginalised community has been one of the worst sufferers of the communication blackout in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in August, 2019.