Govt approves trans officer’s chosen name & gender for records

In a groundbreaking move, the Government of India has approved a transgender civil service officer's request to remove his deadname from official records and replace it with his chosen name. 

On Tuesday, July 9, the Ministry of Finance issued an order approving the name change of Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer M Anukathir Surya. Deadname refers to the name a person used before their transition while chosen name refers to the person’s name after their transition. 

Anukathir Surya, an officer of the 2013 batch of the Customs and Indirect Taxes (C&IT) department, currently serves as Joint Commissioner in the office of the Chief Commissioner (AR) of the Customs Excise & Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in Hyderabad. 

This development marks a milestone in his career and a progressive step toward inclusivity within government institutions. 

Surya's journey in civil service began as an Assistant Commissioner in the Central Board of C&IT in Chennai. 

He was promoted to Deputy Commissioner in 2018, and in 2023, he joined CESTAT in Hyderabad. 

Surya hails from Tamil Nadu and holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communication from the Madras Institute of Technology. In 2023 he completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Cyber Law and Cyber Forensics from the National Law Institute University, Bhopal.

This development comes nearly a decade after the Supreme Court's landmark ruling in the NALSA case, which recognised the third gender. 

Emphasising that gender identity is a personal choice and that transgender individuals must not be denied basic human rights, the Court’s ruling stated: ‘The Constitution has fulfilled its duty of providing rights to transgenders. Now it's time for us to recognize this and to extend and interpret the Constitution in such a manner as to ensure a dignified life for transgender people.’

The judgement noted: