Bombay High Court mentioned that transgenders can get relief under the Domestic Violence Act

Category : National Published on: April 03 2023

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The Bombay High Court recently held that a transgender person who identifies as a woman by undergoing gender reassignment surgery is an aggrieved person under the Domestic Violence Act, 2005, and can seek relief under the same.
A single-judge bench of Justice Amit Borkar passed the order in a plea filed by a man who challenged the October 5, 2021 order of the sessions court, which upheld the November 2019 judgment of the Magistrate court that had directed him to pay Rs. 12,000 as monthly maintenance to his estranged wife.
Justice Borkar noted that section 2(f) of the DV Act that defines a domestic relationship is gender neutral and hence includes persons irrespective of their sexual preferences.
The Act aims to protect the rights of women who are victims of violence. The ruling comes in response to a transgender woman’s domestic violence case against her estranged husband.