C.M. Joshi, Principal District and Sessions Judge, said on Wednesday that society should change the way it treats sexuality minorities.
He was speaking after inaugurating a district-level legal awareness programme for sexuality minorities, organised by the District Legal Services Authority, Department of Women and Child Welfare, Udupi Bar Association, and Sarathya Payana organisation, here.
Mr. Joshi said that there were many issues and discrimination in society. It was the responsibility of the people to set right the problems. The Constitution gives equal rights to all people, yet some communities and people had not joined the mainstream.
It was essential to provide legal awareness to such groups. It was necessary to bring them into the mainstream. There was lack of awareness even among the sexuality minorities. Facilities such as providing identity cards and health cards would go a long way in increasing opportunities for the sexuality minorities, he said.
Sindhu B. Rupesh, CEO of zilla panchayat, said that it was necessary to provide more facilities to sexuality minorities.
“Now the government had formed a policy for the welfare of the sexuality minorities. This will help in providing more facilities for them. This would also change the way the society looked at them,” she said.
Kaveri, senior civil judge and member-secretary of District Legal Services Authority, Kumara Chandra, Additional Superintendent of Police, Vidya Kumari, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Gracy Gonsalves, Deputy Director of Women and Child Development, Sanjeeva Vandse of Ashraya Samudaya Sanghatane, were among those present.