Andrea SannaAkkai Padmashali: ”We have to fight every day”
Akkai Padmashali was the first transgender woman in the state of Karnataka (India) to register a legal marriage in 2018 and to adopt a son with her ex-husband in 2019, becoming a symbol of the fight against state transphobia in India.
“It was always my dream to be a mother. My greatest wish is for my son to grow up free from the burden that society places on those who are considered ‘different’,” she declared in 2018, when her decision to adopt a child made the rounds of national and international media.
The last battle won: a passport for her son. Although Indian regulations allow single parents to apply for the document without having to add the name of the other parent, Akkai Padmashall faced a wall of bureaucracy that is very hostile to transgender people.
And so, after a long legal battle against the Indian bureaucracy, Akkai Padmashall managed to get a passport for her son Avin with only her name.
“Getting a passport for my son without having to name the father is a step forward, not just for me, but for all transgender women and single mothers in India.”.
