Debunking the Idea of a Single (Digital) Identifier: The Case of Identification Documents for Transgender Persons in India

Brindaalakshmi K.

Journal of Development Policy and Practice, 2025, vol. 10, issue 1, 36-44

Abstract: The proposed short essay focuses on the challenges that transgender persons in India face while changing their name and gender on identification documents and the role of technology and digitalisation in keeping this historically silenced community at the margins by limiting their access to rights and services. This essay presents a comparative analysis of the challenges faced by transgender persons before and after the passing of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019 in India, a digital welfare state. The intent is to debunk the use of Aadhaar, a biometric-based digital ID, as a singular identifier for delivering welfare and the use of digitalisation to solve all challenges of access to rights and services for historically invisible groups, like the transgender community in India.

Keywords: Transgender; transgender identity card; trans ID card; digital ID; Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2019; digital welfare; digital welfare state; data for development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:jodepp:v:10:y:2025:i:1:p:36-44

DOI: 10.1177/24551333241247673

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