Colleges deny admission to trans woman, want her to dress up as man

D Ajitha (20), a trans woman, faced rejection from about a dozen colleges during admission when she refused to heed to their demand to dress like a man. Undeterred, she finally got accepted into one without having to compromise on her principles.

- M SARAVANAN 

"I approached 10 private colleges through phone calls, and also directly went to four colleges on Avinashi Road, seeking admission. But they bluntly said they cannot take me in. In fact, two colleges offered me hope but reneged later. All the colleges listed several reasons for denying me admission. One of the main reasons cited was that they cannot afford to create special infrastructure like toilets for trans persons," Ajitha told TNIE.

A resident of Singanallur, Ajitha studied in the corporation school at Vadakovai and secured 373 marks in Class XII. Her father Durai, who worked as revenue inspector in Pollachi, died before she was born. Her mother Jayakodi works as a sanitation labourer in the armed reserve police unit camp in the city.