HC: Can List Trans Couple as Parents in Birth Certificate

The Couple Said That Denying a Gender-Neutral Recognition Would Breach Their Child's Fundamental Rights

- Ayesha Arvind

BENGALURU: The Kerala high court on Monday ruled that a transgender couple can be listed simply as "parents", rather than "mother" and "father", on their child's birth certificate, in a decision that marks a significant moment in the legal recognition of non-traditional families and gender identity in official documents.

The order was passed by a vacation bench of justice Ziyad Rahman AA, who directed Kozhikode municipal authorities to replace gendered parental terms with the gender-neutral designation "parent" for both individuals. The petitioners—Zahhad, a trans man, and Ziya Paval, a trans woman—are believed to be Kerala's first openly transgender couple to have a biological child. Their journey to parenthood captured national attention in February 2023 when Zahhad gave birth, a first for India's transgender community.