The curious logic of the Transgender Persons Amendment Bill

The passage of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill, 2026, in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday has been accompanied by a familiar, almost predictable. justification: protection.

The bill will offer protection for “genuine” beneficiaries of state welfare programmes for transgender persons, supporters say, and protection against these schemes being misused by those falsely claiming transgender identity.

Articulating this logic, Bharatiya Janata Party Janata Party Janata Party MP Medha Kulkarni said in the Rajya Sabha that the amendments would ensure that benefits reach the deserving people in a proper manner. “She said there is a need for a law that brings justice to real transgender individuals and punishes fake ones,” All India Radio reported.