Akkai accepts an MLC or MP appointment but declines a place at the Karnataka Sahitya Academy

Not too long after the state government appointed transgender activist Akkai Padmashali as a member of the Karnataka Sahitya Academy, she asked Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to remove her name from the academy.

Akkai, a member of the Congress, instead asked that members of the transgender community be represented in the Karnataka legislature and Parliament’s Upper Houses. She thanked the state government for the honor in a letter to the two leaders, but she also said, “I am known for my fight against social stigma in society for members of the trans community.” I’m going to keep fighting against this. I ask that DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah dismiss me from the academy.

Instead, she pleaded with them to nominate her to either of the Upper Houses so that she could participate in the legislative process and combat the stigma that the community faces. People from all groups are treated equally under Sarva Janangada Shanthiya Thota, which is now taking place in the state. Members of the transgender community need to be included in the House going forward, she said.