Gymkhana row: Transgender activist to file complaint

Four days after being asked to leave Bombay Gymkhana in the middle of a dinner, transgender activist Laxmi Tripathi has decided to approach the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC).

Four days after being asked to leave Bombay Gymkhana in the middle of a dinner, transgender activist Laxmi Tripathi has decided to approach the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC).

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“My constitutional right to equality, to live with dignity, has been denied,” she said, speaking to HT at a café run by V Care Group, of which she is director.

Laxmi — an entrepreneur, renowned speaker and founder-member of South Asia’s first transgender association — will approach the state human rights panel on Wednesday morning, with a complaint about the club’s treatment of her on Friday night.

Last Friday, the Thane resident — one of those scheduled to speak at the TEDx Mumbai conference the following day — was among 50-odd invitees at a pre-event dinner held at the Bombay Gymkhana.

Two hours after she arrived, the evening’s host, Ajay Hattangadi, was told that his membership would be revoked if she did not leave immediately.

“The best part was when all the 50 guests stood up and walked out with me,” she said on Tuesday. “Some had tears in their eyes and have been calling me every day to ask if I am alright… I wouldn’t have known how to handle the humiliation.”

After her visit to the rights commission office at CST, Laxmi is also planning to file a complaint with the Azad Maidan police. On Friday, to mark a week since the incident, she will lead a protest rally from Azad Maidan to Bombay Gymkhana.

“A number of activists and NGOs have expressed their support and will be there,” she said. Bombay Gymkhana Deputy CEO Col (Retd) A.K. Bhargava declined comment.