---
title: "NALSA v. Union of India (2014): Third Gender"
description: "NALSA v. Union of India (2014) recognized transgender persons as a legal third gender, affirming their rights to self-identification in India."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/national-legal-services-authority-v-union-of-india"
---

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Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- NALSA v.
- Union of India (2014) is the Indian Supreme Court judgment that recognised transgender persons as a legal "third gender" and affirmed their fundamental rights to self-identification.
- What fundamental rights did NALSA v. Union of India rely on?
- How does NALSA differ from the Navtej Singh Johar judgment of 2018?
- Did NALSA require surgery for legal gender recognition?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

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In 2014, activist Laxmi Narayan Tripathi joined the National Legal Services Authority's petition, and the Supreme Court's ruling enabled her and other transgender persons to be officially recognised as a third gender on Indian identity documents.

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