Facts:
The Petitioners filed a writ petition being aggrieved by the discriminatory remarks and
inhuman references used in the medical textbooks prescribed for medical courses in
India against the LGBTQI community. Their argument was that the language used
negative stereotypes and categorised sexual orientation and gender identity as a
mental disorder or perversion. It was argued that such remarks infringe the rights of
the LGBTQIA+.
Court Decision and Reasoning:
The High Court of Kerala directed the Under-Graduate Medical Education Board, New
Delhi, to consider the representations of the petitioners in the context of the grievances
expressed regarding queer-phobic contents in medical textbooks, which were stated
to be violative of the rights guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. It also
directed the Under-Graduate Medical Education Board, New Delhi to obtain the
remarks and views of the Kerala University of Health Sciences, Thrissur and directed
that this exercise shall be completed within 8 weeks.
Significance:
This case is significant because it directed the medical education authorities to review
the offensive and discriminatory content in medical curricula which is used to refer to
the LGBTQI community and take steps to remove the same. However, it is not clear if
such steps were indeed taken.