Tamil Nadu: Transwoman seeks President Ram Nath Kovind nod for mercy killing
Tamil Nadu transwoman Shanavi Ponnusamy, who was refused a job by Air India because of her gender, seeks euthanasia.
Chennai: Denied a job owing to her gender, a Tamil Nadu based transwoman has pleaded with President Ram Nath Kovind for euthanasia. The letter she wrote to the first citizen of the country has raised ripples in the transgender community and threw the spotlight on their plights, on Wednesday.
A former employee of Air India customer support executive (International) in Sutherland Global Services, Chennai, Shanavi Ponnuswamy had undergone SRS surgery.
“For the last two years, I have got call letters on 4 occasions for the post of cabin crew in Air India. But my name was not in final lists on all the occasions.
When contacted, ministry of civil aviation and Air India officials replied that they do not have a separate category for ‘transwomen’,” she said in the letter.
She also claimed that she has the eligibility and experience for the job. “The Supreme Court had directed the Air India and civil aviation ministry to respond within four weeks on the issue in November. But no response has been received from them yet,” she added.
She also told the President that she has been struggling to pay for her daily food expense. “Kindly allow ‘mercy killing’. I am proud to die in my Indian government hand (sic),” she said in the letter.