Indian Navy discharges sailor who underwent sex change to become woman

The Navy has discharged the services a sailor who underwent gender reassignment surgery to become a woman.

NEW DELHI: The Navy has discharged the services of a sailor who underwent gender reassignment surgery to become a woman.

Manish Giri, the sailor, underwent surgery in Mumbai last year after he felt like "a woman trapped in a man's body". He now goes by the name "Sabi" and started dressing up like a woman.

Post surgery, the sailor returned to the INS Eksila base in Visakhapatnam, when the issues cropped up.

The sailor was allegedly kept in a psychiatric ward for six months by the maritime force.

This is the first ever case of gender transformation in the Indian Navy, which claimed that it recruited Giri under the “Indian male citizen" clause seven years ago.

The Navy does induct women officers but recruits only men as sailors, soldiers, and airmen in entry-level or lower ranks. Currently, transgenders or transsexual people are not allowed to join the armed forces.

The maritime force served the discharge letter on Friday, dismissing Giri by invoking the clause of 'Service No Longer Required' under the Navy Regulations", post-approval from the defense ministry.

The sailor is also not eligible for any pension because of mandatory service clause of 15 years in the armed forces.

In its official statement, the Indian maritime force said, "The serving sailor, who underwent sex reassignment surgery at a private facility whilst on leave, was administratively discharged from the service," the statement said.

"The individual chose to undergo irreversible gender re-assignment on his own accord whilst on leave, wilfully altering his gender status from the one he was recruited for at the time of his induction," it said.

"He has, therefore, breached the Recruitment Regulations and eligibility criteria for his employment as a sailor in the Indian Navy. The existing service rules and regulations do not permit the sailor's continued employment owing to his altered gender status, medical condition and resultant employability restrictions," it added.

Giri has vowed to fight for justice.