Karnataka High Court Allows Transgender Petitioners to Continue Hormone Therapy

The Karnataka High Court has issued an interim order permitting two transgender individuals to continue their ongoing hormone replacement therapy (HRT) without interruption. The petitioners had approached the court after doctors at a private hospital in Bengaluru refused to administer further treatment, citing restrictions imposed by the recent Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Act, 2026. This amendment mandates medical board certification and restricts self-identification, causing healthcare providers to halt services pending regulatory clarity. Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum, presiding over the Vacation Bench, emphasized that abrupt discontinuation of such medical treatment could have severe adverse effects on the petitioners' physical and mental well-being. The court relied on medical records and analogous precedents from the Kerala High Court to justify its decision. While the Additional Solicitor General argued that no coercive action had been initiated by authorities, the court prioritized immediate health needs. The permission to continue HRT is subject to the final outcome of pending petitions challenging the amendment's validity, which are currently sub-judice before the Supreme Court of India. This ruling highlights the ongoing legal tension between new legislative frameworks and individual healthcare rights for the transgender community in India.